


Another Life

by ThoseWhoShowUp



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Children, F/M, Family, Post Bartlett Administration, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-02-18
Updated: 2013-02-18
Packaged: 2019-05-30 10:21:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,817
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15094712
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThoseWhoShowUp/pseuds/ThoseWhoShowUp
Summary: "Should I quit my job?" he asked quietly.Donna staredat him in disbelief. "Your job?" she repeated. "Josh your jobis your life.""I could have another life," he statedstaring deeply into her eyes.





	1. Week 6

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

  
Author's notes: This was something that just came out of nowhere. It might  
completely suck. I'm not sure, but I hope someone out there  
enjoys it.  


* * *

"Should I quit my job?" he asked quietly. 

Donna stared at him in disbelief. "Your job?" she repeated.   
"Josh your job is your life." 

"I could have another life," he stated staring deeply into her   
eyes. 

****************** Week 6 ******************

 

The Santos administration had settled into The White House   
rather comfortably. There had been the usual beginning of   
the administration disorder. People finding their niche and   
learning just what their jobs entailed. Three years in   
everything was going rather nicely. They were gearing up for   
their third State of the Union address, and the message was   
well formed. 

Between Josh and Sam, the West Wing ran smoothly. They   
found themselves frequently asking what Leo would have   
done in a situation. More often than not they followed what   
they saw as their predecessors guidance. Josh called CJ in   
California for advice regularly; the conversations usually   
ended with updates on their personal lives, which he took   
home to Donna. 

"I talked to CJ again today," he said as they lay in bed late   
one night. 

Donna sighed and rolled over to face him. "I miss her... and   
Danny," she stated. "And we haven't even met the baby." 

"We will," he stated. "I'm sure there'll be reason to go to   
California this year. Maybe we could take a couple days off   
to visit them." 

Donna smiled at him. "Days off?" she asked. "The Chief of   
Staff?" 

"I've done it before," he replied. "Well a day at least." 

"Not counting weekends?" Donna replied. 

"Christmas," Josh replied causing Donna to grin. 

"Yeah," she said. "That was good." She kissed him gently.   
Josh had surprised her at Christmas that year. He had told   
her he couldn't get away to visit her family with her and then   
on Christmas Eve he showed up on her parents' doorstep.   
"It'd be nice to visit them," she said. "We should plan it."

"I think the President is going out there in a couple months,"   
Josh muttered. "How about then?" 

"I'll see if the First Lady is going to go too," Donna replied. 

"We're breaking a rule," Josh stated with a laugh. "The one   
about no shop talk in bed." 

Donna laughed in turn. "When did you become a stickler for   
the rules?" she asked with a smirk at him. 

"When they got in the way of me doing this," Josh declared   
matter-of-factly before pulling her toward him and kissing   
her. Donna laughed as she kissed him back. 

Josh woke up with a groan as the alarm blared. He felt   
Donna lean across him and turn it off. "You know," she   
murmured rolling onto her back next to him with her head   
cradled on his shoulder. "Since you refuse to move at the   
alarm, wouldn't it make more since to have it on my side of   
the bed." 

"Uh uh," Josh mumbled back. "Then," he said, "you wouldn't   
lean across me like that anymore." 

Donna laughed. She admitted to herself that staying in bed   
sounded amazing; she was just exhausted. "Come on," she   
said finally, rolling away from him. "Time to get up." When   
Josh didn't move, she added, "I'm getting in the shower. If   
you move more quickly, you can join me." 

Josh's eyes shot open, and he grinned. He loved how she   
still surprised him after more than two years of living   
together. Quickly, he hopped out of bed and followed her   
into the bathroom. After a shower and then some, they were   
dressed and in the kitchen throwing together breakfast and   
coffee. 

"What is your day like today?" she asked. 

"Senior Staff first thing," he stated. "Sam and I have a   
meeting with some people from the D triple-C, meeting with   
the President and the ambassador to Germany about some   
EU issues, then hopefully lunch with my gorgeous   
girlfriend." He ran his hand around her waist and across her   
back as the walked passed her to open the fridge. "You   
thought I forgot huh?" 

"I was just checking," she said. "I would hate to bail early on   
a meeting with the women's veterans group if you weren't   
going to show." 

"We can push lunch back an hour, I have a meeting with Lou   
at one, but I could switch that to noon and eat with you   
after," he rambled. 

Donna laughed. "I was joking. My meeting should be done   
by noon. I'll meet you in the Mess at 12:10 on the dot." She   
smiled at him and added, "Come on, we need to go." 

**************  
Josh grabbed his jacket off the back of his chair and pulled   
it on. "I'm going down for lunch," he muttered to Margaret   
as he walked passed her desk. "I'll be back before my one   
o'clock meeting." He started out into the hallway. "Oh," he   
said turning around. "Do you want anything?" he asked. 

Margaret smiled. She had to admit him being with Donna   
was definitely making him more considerate. "No thanks   
Josh," she said. "Ronna and I are going to grab something   
later." 

"Okay," he said as he hurried out of the office. He was   
worried he might be late. Donna was waiting for him at the   
bottom of the stairs when he got there. "Hey," he greeted.   
"Sorry, am I late?" 

"Nope," she said. "Right on time."

"Okay," he said. "Let's get food." Josh noticed Donna making   
funny faces at the food. "What's wrong?" he asked. 

"I don't know," she replied. "Nothing really sounds all that   
appetizing." She sighed. "I'll just get a salad." 

"Okay," Josh replied. "Are you going to eat my fries if I get   
them with my sandwich?" 

Donna laughed. "History indicates yes. Let's eat in your   
office," she added. "There are too many people down here." 

"Alright," Josh said. They went back upstairs and settled into   
his office. Margaret wasn't at her desk, so Josh figured she   
and Ronna must have been getting their lunches. "How's   
your day been?" Josh asked as they sat down. 

"Pretty good," she replied. "We've come pretty far on the   
plan for the women veterans' group." 

"Good," Josh replied. "That's important stuff. How about the   
thing with the female scientists speaking in schools?" he   
asked. 

Donna smiled. These were things that didn't matter at all to   
Josh professionally. They weren't big enough programs to   
affect the perception of the administration, and they had   
nothing to do with the President's agenda. He was asking   
because he cared what she was doing. "It's going really well.   
Particularly here in DC." 

She went to take a bite of her salad, but something in the   
dressing smelled off. She put the fork back down without   
taking the bite. "Everything okay?" Josh asked. 

"It smells kind of funny," she stated. 

He leaned over and took the fork, smelling the salad.   
"Hmm," he said. "I don't smell anything." He took a bite. "I   
don't think it is bad, but do you want some of my sandwich   
instead?" he asked. 

She smiled and stood up crossing to his side of the desk.   
"No," she replied sitting on his desk next to his chair. "But I   
will eat some of your fries." She reached down and took a   
few. After eating them, she said, "I guess maybe I'm just not   
hungry." 

"Are you sick?" Josh asked concerned. She had gotten a   
stomach bug around this time the year before. 

"I don't think so," she replied. "Whatever, tell me about your   
day." 

*********************

Josh got home late that night. "Donna," he called from the   
entryway. He was surprised not to hear an answer. Even   
when he was home late, she was waiting for him either with   
dinner or a beer or just a kiss. 

He dropped his bag by the door and hung up his coat on the   
coat rack she had bought them. Smiling at a picture of   
hanging near it of the old gang with President Bartlet from   
the dedication of the Bartlet Presidential Library the year   
before. Danny and CJ had their arms around each other, as   
did he and Donna. Sam stood next to them and Charlie next   
to him. Toby was standing next to President Bartlet. They all   
looked happy. Josh had thought it amazing how far they had   
all come, and mostly together. 

He moved into the apartment turning off the lamp that   
Donna had left burning for him. He expected to find her   
reading in bed, perhaps so engrossed in her book that she   
hadn't heard him call her name. He smiled when he saw her   
on the bed. She was lying on top of the covers, in her   
pajamas. Her head was on his pillow despite her body   
mostly being on her side of the bed, and her book was open   
next to her on the bed. Josh sat down on his side of the bed   
and leaned over gently to kiss her on the temple. "Donna,"   
he whispered. 

"Mmm," she hummed. 

"You fell asleep," he said. 

She didn't open her eyes, but she placed her hand on his   
upper arm and squeezed slightly. "What time is it?" she   
asked quietly. 

"About ten-thirty," he replied and kissed her again. "Here,"   
he pulled back the covers so she could slide between them.   
"I'll come to bed in just a minute." 

"Good," she whispered, squeezing his arm again before   
letting go. 

Josh went into the bathroom and brushed his teeth. He   
rubbed some water over his face and took off his suit. Going   
back into the bedroom, he tossed his suit and shirt in a   
laundry bag to go to the dry cleaners. He hung his tie up in   
the closet and then went back to the bed. 

Donna had rolled over partially onto his side of the bed   
again, her head half on his pillow. He smiled. "Scoot over   
and let me in," he said gently climbing in next to her. 

"With pleasure," she replied throwing one arm across his   
chest. "Why were you so late tonight?" 

"Sit. room," he replied. "Sorry." 

"Everything okay?" she asked. 

"Okay enough," he replied. "Don't worry about it. Go back to   
sleep." He kissed her hairline. 

"I'm not so tired," she muttered into his chest. 

"You could have fooled me," he replied. "How are you   
feeling?" he asked. "Did you eat anything for dinner?" 

"Yeah," she replied. "I had some soup and crackers." 

"That's good," he said. "I hope you aren't sick." 

"Mmm," she hummed again. 

"You are tired," Josh insisted. "Go to sleep." 

"M'kay." She nuzzled closer into his side, and he tightened   
his grip on her. 

************************

A few days later, Donna was sure she was sick. She had   
thrown up three times in the past 24 hours. She was eating   
soda crackers at her desk hoping she would at least be able   
to keep those down when Mrs. Santos came out of her   
office. She sat opposite Donna. "I was wondering if we could   
reschedule that thing with the DAR next month," Helen   
asked. "I was hoping to take the kids and visit my parents. I   
wanted to do it while Matt was in Europe for the meeting   
with the G8." 

"Sure," Donna said. "I can easily reschedule it." 

"Are you still not feeling well?" Helen asked nodding toward   
the package of crackers on Donna's desk. 

"No," she replied. "Josh was pissed I insisted on coming in   
today. I just can't seem to keep anything down. So far I'm   
doing okay with these though." Donna smiled up at Helen.   
"I'm sure I'll be fine in a couple days Ma'am." 

"Funny," Helen replied. "Those were the only thing I could   
keep down when I was preg..." she trailed off. Donna looked   
up and Helen with her eyes wide. "Donna?" Helen asked. "Do   
you think you might be...?" 

"I hadn't thought about it," Donna replied. She wondered   
quickly why it hadn't crossed her mind. She knew enough   
from talking to girlfriends and her cousin. She was   
exhausted and nauseous. "But, I guess I might be." She ran   
and hand over her hair. "Oh my god," she muttered. "Josh'll   
freak out." 

"Do you want to leave early today and go by the drug store?"   
Helen asked. "It'd be okay if you did." 

"No," Donna replied. "The meetings this afternoon are   
important. This evening will be soon enough.

Helen nodded and smiled reassuringly. "It'll be fine Donna,"   
she said. "Either way." 

"Thank you Ma'am," Donna responded. "I'll let you know   
when everyone is here for the meeting, and I'll take care of   
the DAR event reschedule right now." 

"Thanks Donna," Helen said. She rested her hand   
reassuringly on Donna's shoulder before she went back to   
her office. 

After work, Donna stood in the aisle of the drug store down   
the street from Josh and her apartment. She found it funny   
that right next to the pregnancy tests on one side were   
condoms and the other side were tampons. If you needed   
the test, it was likely one of those was too late and the other   
was unneeded. She laughed slightly and grabbed a box off   
the shelf. She walked to the counter and checked out. 

Back at their apartment, she paced nervously across the   
bedroom in front of the bathroom door. Part of her hoped   
Josh would come home before she had taken the test.   
Another part of her hoped he wouldn't. If the test was   
negative, she could just ignore it, and he would never need   
to know. 

Finally she took a deep breath and said to herself, "Here   
goes nothing." She walked into the bathroom. 

******************

Josh was thrilled to have escaped the office as early as he   
did. It was only seven-thirty when he got home. "Honey, I'm   
home," he called out with a laugh. 

"Uh hey," Donna called from the kitchen. "I made dinner,"   
she said. 

"Smells good," Josh said. "You must be feeling better," he   
observed entering the kitchen. 

Donna smiled as he leaned in and kissed her. "A little," she   
said. "I finally feel hungry." 

"That's good," he replied. "Dinner ready?" he asked. "Or do I   
have time for a shower?"

"About fifteen minutes," she answered. "You can get a   
shower in." 

"Okay," he said. "I'll be right back." He kissed her again   
before disappearing into the bedroom. Donna turned back   
to the dinner. 

Josh shed his suit in the bedroom before grabbing a change   
of clothes and moving into the bathroom for his shower. He   
felt himself immediately relax under the steady stream of   
hot water. After washing his hair, he got out of the shower   
and dried himself off. Once he was dressed in a pair of jeans   
and a t-shirt, he looked into the mirror and ran a towel   
through his hair. He dropped the towel on the ground when   
he was about to leave the bathroom. Stopping suddenly, he   
stooped to pick it up, knowing Donna would yell at him if he   
left it wet on the floor. As he stood up, he noticed   
something in the trash bin. 

Donna turned as she heard Josh coming out of the bedroom.   
He was holding the empty First Response box in his hand.   
"Donna...?" he asked looking at her wide-eyed. "Uh..." 

She bit her lip. "Josh," she began. She crossed to him and   
took his hand. Sitting down in a chair at the table, she   
tugged on his hand so he sat in another chair. They were   
facing each other, their knees bumping. She let go of his   
hand. 

"So you are," Josh stated. "You wouldn't go through all this if   
the test was negative. You would have just said." He took a   
deep breath. 

"Yeah," she said with a nod. "I am." 

Josh breathed out slowly. "Oohkay." He paused a moment.   
"It's why you've been sick," he observed. 

"Yeah," she agreed. "Josh?" she asked. 

"What?" he questioned when she didn't continue speaking 

"How do you feel about this?" she asked looking anywhere   
but at him. 

Josh reached out and took her hand again. This prompted   
Donna to look up and into his eyes. "I think," he began. His   
mind was racing. He closed his eyes. A baby. Then suddenly,   
a calm settled over him. A baby, their baby. He opened his   
eyes and said, "I think this is the best news I've ever heard."   
He smiled. "Better than any election results." 

"Really?" she asked smiling hopefully. 

"Really," he stated. He leaned in and kissed her. "Wow," he   
said quietly. "A baby. Our baby."

"Our baby," she repeated liking the sound of it. 

Suddenly Josh's eyes got wide. "Should we get married?   
Should we buy a bigger place, with a yard maybe?" he asked   
quickly. He took a breath. "Donna?" he began again. "Should   
I quit my job?" he asked quietly. 

Donna stared at him in disbelief. "Your job?" she repeated.   
"Josh your job is your life." 

"I could have another life," he stated staring deeply into her   
eyes. "We could have another life." 

"Wouldn't you miss it?" she asked. 

"Maybe," he stated. "But you're all I need, and with the baby,   
it'd more than make up for missing it." 

Donna smiled at him and leaned forward and kissed him   
again. "That's sweet Josh, but I like the life we have now.   
Don't you think this could just be a wonderful addition?" 

"But the hours I work," Josh began. "I might not ever see him   
or her." 

"Maybe we can both cut back. Sam's got a good handle on   
everything so does Annabeth. Maybe we could let them do a   
little more." She squeezed his hand, and he nodded. "We'll   
make it work. Now, let's eat; I made dinner." She stood up to   
get the dinner. 

"How domestic of you," Josh said with a grin. "Wait," he   
suddenly exclaimed. "You should sit down," he added   
leading her back to the table. "I'll get dinner." 

Donna laughed, but she allowed him to seat her and get all   
the food. They had a lovely dinner. Frequently, they would   
look up and grin at each other. After dinner, they sat on the   
couch. Josh had one arm wrapped around Donna's shoulder,   
and his other hand was rubbing small circles on her belly. "I   
can't believe there is a baby in there." 

"You know Josh," she said. "It could be a false positive. I   
need to go to the doctor to be sure." 

"Do you think it is a mistake?" he asked. 

"Well no," she answered. "I have enough symptoms. I'll call   
tomorrow from the office to make an appointment." 

"As soon as you make it, let me know," Josh said. "So I can   
have Sam take any meetings." 

"You want to go?" she asked turning on the couch to face   
him. 

"Well yeah," he replied quickly. "This is my kid." He smiled   
so big at that statement that he almost laughed. Josh put his   
arm back around her, pulling her to him. 

************************

Friday afternoon found Josh and Donna leaving her ob-gyn's   
office. "That was amazing," Josh said. "It feels so real."   
Donna nodded. "So after listening to the doctor, do you   
want to tell people now or wait?"

"I think I'd rather wait until closer to the end of the first   
trimester," Donna stated. "Just in case anything goes wrong.   
I'd rather not have anyone know." Josh nodded suddenly   
concerned. Donna reached out and squeezed his hand. "Just   
in case. Don't worry now." 

"Okay," Josh sighed. "So just our secret," he said. 

"Well, I'll probably need to tell the First Lady. She already   
suspects since she was the one who put the idea in my   
head. I'm sure she'll ask about the appointment when I get   
back to the office too." 

"Think she'll tell the president?" Josh asked wrapping his   
arm around Donna's shoulder. She shrugged. "Would you   
tell me?" 

"I didn't tell you about CJ did I?" Donna asked. 

"You knew before?" Josh asked, his voice jumping an octave. 

"Just a couple days," she said with a smile. "I probably would   
have told you if she hadn't been planning on announcing it   
when they came out to visit." 

"Really?" he asked. 

Donna nodded. "Definitely," she replied. 

"So we aren't even telling family yet?" Josh asked. " Because   
you know both our mothers will freak out that they weren't   
the first phone call." 

"Yeah," Donna agreed. "I think we should tell family sooner,   
at least your mom and my parents. Maybe this weekend?" 

"Okay," Josh agreed. 

When they got back to the White House, he walked her to   
her office and kissed her goodbye before hurrying off to   
check with Sam. Donna had been right about the First Lady.   
Helen came into her office just as Donna was getting ready   
to go home. "So how did it go?" she asked sitting across   
from Donna. 

Donna smiled. "It went well," she said. "I'm six weeks along."

"I just knew it," Helen said with a smile. "How do you feel?" 

"Happy, scared, surprised, anxious, you name it," Donna   
listed. Helen nodded knowingly. "Josh is doing a lot better   
than I expected." 

"Matt did too," Helen stated. "They can be surprising. So did   
they give you a due date?" she asked. 

"The tenth of September," Donna stated. She paused for a   
moment. "Other than Josh," she said. "You are the only   
person who knows. We are waiting until at least 12 weeks to   
tell people." 

"I'll keep it to myself," Helen replied. "Don't be surprised if   
people catch on before you tell though," she said. "They did   
with both of mine." 

"Thanks," Donna replied. 

"You're welcome," Helen said. "And Donna, don't come in   
this weekend. You or Josh." 

"I don't know if I can convince him to do that," Donna said   
skeptically. 

"I can make it happen," Helen replied with a grin. "Bye   
Donna."

"Goodnight Ma'am. Have a good weekend," Donna   
responded. 

*********************  
That night Josh got home quite a bit later than she did.   
Donna was sitting on the couch drinking a cup of tea with   
her computer on her lap. "How are you feeling?" he asked   
immediately. He dropped his backpack by the door and   
moved to sit next to her on the couch. 

"I'm good," she said. "How was your afternoon?"

"Fine," Josh replied. "What are you looking at?" He nodded to   
the computer. 

"Pregnancy stuff," she answered. "Check it out." She turned   
the computer to face him. "It says the baby is the size of a   
lentil." 

"That's so tiny," he said. "Hard to believe. What else?" 

Donna smiled at his intense interest. "It's growing eyes,   
ears, and a nose," she added. 

"Did you look at the part that talks about your symptoms?"   
Josh asked tapping part of the screen. 

"Not yet," Donna said. "I was trying to start with the good   
stuff." She clicked the link. "Let's see. So I can expect to be   
moody." 

"Looking forward to it," Josh replied with a smirk. He leaned   
in to kiss her to let her know he was joking. "It says you   
should start an exercise routine. Can you just keep yours?" 

"For now," she replied. She closed the computer and set it   
on the coffee table. Then, she leaned into Josh's side. "I'm   
glad you're home." 

"Me too," he replied wrapping his arms around her and   
pulling her back against his chest. "I know it will drive you   
crazy, but I can't help worrying about you." He paused for a   
moment. "Do you think that is normal?" 

Donna smiled. "Probably," she replied. "And worry all you   
want, just don't try to stop me from doing things." 

"Deal," Josh replied. He glanced at the clock. "It's getting   
late. We should get you to bed." He stood up and offered   
her a hand up. "The President said nobody could come to   
work this weekend. That was directed at me wasn't it?" he   
asked as they walked toward the bedroom together. He   
never dropped her hand. 

"Might have been. It was at the First Lady's insisting, not   
mine," she added. She moved into the bathroom to brush   
her teeth before changing into her pajamas. 

While changing, Josh stated. "I'm happy to stay home this   
weekend. We have people to call." 

Donna laughed as she moved to the bed. Josh crawled in   
next to her. She scooted over to him and he rested a hand   
on her stomach. 

"That feels really good," she said after a moment of silence.   
Josh had started gently rubbing his hand in a circle on her   
belly. 

"I can't believe you have a baby in there," he said. "It is...   
just... I don't know." 

"So much for that 760 verbal," Donna joked. 

"It does me no good when there are literally no words to   
describe something," he retorted. 

Donna laughed and rolled onto her side, cuddling closer to   
Josh in the process. "Love you," she murmured. 

"I love you too," he responded, "both of you." Donna grinned   
in the dark and placed her hand on top of his on her   
stomach.


	2. Week 12

******************* Week 12 ********************

Josh was dead on his feet. Air Force One had gotten back later than expected on the Presidents’ trip to Germany for the G8 conference. He had dropped some things at the office and hurried home to see Donna. Worrying she might be asleep, he was careful to enter the apartment quietly. 

As he set his bag down, he noticed that the lights were still on. “Donna?” he asked quietly. 

“Josh?” she questioned from the kitchen. He noticed something sounded off in her voice, like she was crying. 

He walked into the kitchen. Donna was sitting on the floor with a towel in her hand crying hysterically. “Are you okay?” Josh asked quickly kneeling down next to her. “Are you hurt?” 

Through her breath wracked with sobs, Donna managed to get out, “No… but… I… spilled… my … water.” 

Josh noticed a small puddle and took the towel out of her hand to dry it up. “It’s okay. It’s just water. Why’d that make you cry?” 

Donna started to cry harder and barely managed to say, “I… don’t know.” She leaned into Josh and buried her head in his shoulder. 

Totally bewildered, he just hugged her. “It’s okay,” he said. “Come on, let’s get you up.” He stood up and offered her a hand to stand up. He led her to the couch and sat down with her. “I’ll get you another glass of water,” he added starting to stand up. 

“No,” Donna said stopping his with her hand. “Stay here.” 

Josh smiled at her. “Okay,” he said. After a minute of holding her, she stopped crying, and he asked, “Feel better?” 

“Yeah,” she replied. “It’s so silly. I cry at everything.” He just laughed a little. “Can you not leave again?” she asked. “At least not for so long.” 

“I’ll do my best,” he replied. He had really only been gone for three days; they had been apart for a lot longer than that since taking office, but he decided this wasn’t the time to tell her that. He paused for a moment. “I missed you.” 

Donna started to cry again. “I missed you too,” she replied through her tears. 

“Alright,” Josh said. “Let’s go to bed.” He helped her up and led her into the bedroom. 

**********************

Donna and Josh were sitting in his office having lunch later that week. “I want to call CJ now then,” she said. “If we are telling everyone else she needs to know first. She is one of my best friends Josh, yours too.” 

“I know. Sam will be mad if we tell her first,” he stated. 

“Well we can’t tell them at the same time,” Donna said. “Unless I call her while you tell him.” 

“That’d work,” Josh asserted. “I could go over to his office, and you could call from here. “ 

“Just come right back because CJ will want to talk to you,” Donna said. 

“Okay,” Josh said kissing her quickly before hurrying off to Sam’s office while Donna pulled out her phone. 

“Hello,” CJ answered the phone. 

“Hey CJ,” Donna greeted. 

“Donna,” she responded enthusiastically. “I haven’t talked to you in weeks. When are you and Joshua coming to visit us?” 

“We are hoping next month,” Donna replied. “The President and First Lady are going to LA, and Josh and I thought we would take a couple days off to stay longer and visit.” 

“Perfect,” CJ replied. “We look forward to it. Danny is on this new kick about playing tour guide,” she added with a laugh. Donna laughed as well. “So what’s new?” CJ asked. 

“Well it is funny you should ask,” Donna replied. 

\---------------

Josh had tried to enter Sam’s office casually, but Sam, having known him as long as he had, immediately picked up on the fact that something was up. “Hey,” Josh said sitting down in one of the chairs. “How’s it going?”

“Fine,” Sam replied. “What’s going on?” 

“Oh well,” Josh stammered. “I was uh, wondering if you had a moment to talk.” 

“Sure, what about?” Sam asked. “I’m still working on the meeting with Senator Harrison if that is what you wanted to talk about.” 

“Oh, no,” Josh replied. “It’s not related to work.” 

“Oh?” Sam asked curiously. “What is it?” 

\----------------

Donna took a deep breath. “I’m pregnant,” she finally said. 

“Wow,” CJ replied. “That’s wonderful Donna. How far along are you?” 

“Twelve weeks,” Donna stated. “We told our families a few weeks ago. Otherwise, you are the first person I’ve told. Well other than the First Lady, who guessed before I did.” 

“I’m honored,” CJ replied. “You haven’t told Sparky?” she asked pulling out Sam’s old nickname. 

“Josh is actually telling him right now,” Donna explained. “We figured you two would compete over who heard first.” 

CJ laughed. “Speaking of Josh, how is he handling the prospect of fatherhood?” 

“Actually amazingly well,” Donna replied. “He never even freaked out. His voice never even did the thing,” she explained. “He seems really excited about it. I think he will actually make an amazing father.” 

“I’m sure he will. He can be very sweet sometimes,” CJ said genuinely. 

“He is making lists of how to ensure our kid is a democrat. I remind him we have over eighteen years before he or she can register for vote, but that means little to him.”

CJ laughed. “Now that sounds like Josh. Speaking of, do I get to congratulate him?” 

\--------------

“Donna’s pregnant,” Josh blurted out. 

Sam grinned. “Really?” he asked. “That’s great. How do you feel?” 

“Thrilled,” Josh replied confidently. “All I can think about is what this little person will be like. I thought I’d always loved Donna, which I mean I have, but this is just making it so much more.” He laughed a little. “I think I might be driving her crazy. I keep asking her how she is feeling and if she needs anything, like every moment.” 

Sam smiled. “Congratulations,” he said. “I need to go congratulate her.” He stood up. “Do other people know?” 

“Just our families and the First Lady. Donna is on the phone with CJ now in my office.” 

“Afraid we would be competitive about it?” Sam asked exiting his office followed by Josh. 

“A bit,” Josh replied as they walked to his office. 

As he and Sam entered, Donna turned to him. “Oh good,” CJ wants to talk to you. She handed him the phone. 

Sam nearly immediately pulled her into a hug while Josh talked to CJ. It took about five minutes before Josh hung up and Sam left, and they were alone again. “Why does everyone assume I am going to be a nutcase over this?” he asked her. “CJ did, I know Sam did even though he didn’t say it, my mom did, your mom did,” he listed. “Your father actually laughed at me.” 

“Because it is you Josh,” she stated. 

“Did you think I would?” he asked realizing her opinion was the only one he cared about. 

“At first,” she replied. “But I think that was more me being scared and putting it on you instead of admitting it to myself.” 

He smiled briefly. “You know,” he admitted, “I probably would have freaked out if it had happened with someone other than you. I always assumed if I had a kid it would be with you.” He flashed her a dimpled grin. 

“Me too,” Donna replied. 

“We are still on for dinner tonight right?” Josh asked. He had insisted on a date night that night. He had plans. 

Donna nodded. “Yeah, but for now I better get back to work. Are we going home together tonight?” she asked. 

“Yeah, I’ll come to you when I am done here.” 

***********************  
Josh bounced anxiously on the balls of his feet in their living room. Donna had taken all her stuff and disappeared into the bathroom about thirty minutes before to get ready. She had insisted that if she had to dress up for a date, she was going for the full effect, meaning he couldn’t see her until she was completely ready to go. 

“Come on Donna,” he called. “We have reservations.” 

“You’ve told me that six times,” she said coming out of the bathroom. 

“Wow,” Josh breathed out as she entered the living room. “You look… incredible.” She was wearing a simple black dress, her hair was curly, and she had on a necklace of simple blue stones and matching earrings, which he had given her for Christmas. She smiled at him. He crossed to her and kissed her passionately. “How’d I get so lucky?” 

“I couldn’t tell you,” she replied with a smirk. “I have to tell you though. I think this’ll be the last time I can wear this dress for a while. She touched her belly, which was straining slightly against the fabric. 

“I have to tell you,” Josh said. “That I find that very sexy.” He kissed her neck beneath her ear as he helped her on with her coat. Anyone who didn’t know probably wouldn’t guess she was pregnant, but the fact that she was starting to show amazed him. 

They took a cab to the restaurant. Josh had chosen it because it was one of Donna’s favorites, and they knew them there. Dinner was wonderful. Josh ordered a steak, and Donna had chicken. They shared dessert of chocolate hazelnut cake.   
After dessert, they went for a walk around the Mall, hand in hand. Josh stopped at a place where they could see the White House. “You know,” he said. “You’re what made it home for me there.” He nodded toward the building lit in the beautiful DC night. “I don’t think I really fully knew that until you left.” 

“Josh, I’m…” Donna began, but he cut her off. 

“Don’t Donna,” he said gently. “I’m just saying it because well I want you to know how much I love you and always have.” She smiled and began to open her mouth but he continued. “The day I met you was the most important moment of my life. I wish I had known it then,” he continued. He was staring deeply into her eyes, and Donna felt like he could see straight to her soul. “Do you remember what you said?” he asked. 

She nodded. “Something about thinking I could do a good job, and a lot of other ramblings.” 

“You said you thought I might find you valuable,” he said. “I could never have imagined how true that would be.” Josh pulled his hand out of his coat pocket and held out a small black velvet box to Donna. Dropping her hand with his other, he flipped the box open. Inside was a simple diamond ring. “Donna, would you marry me?” he asked simply. 

She smiled at him but shook her head. “Josh, I don’t want to get married just because I am pregnant,” she explained. 

“That’s not why I’m proposing,” he said. “I planned this months ago, honestly.” 

“Why’d you wait so long then?” she asked. “Why not propose then?” 

“I was waiting for today,” Josh said sincerely. “Don’t you know what it is?” 

“February 24,” she said simply. “You’re a couple weeks late for Valentines Day.” 

Josh laughed a little. “You gave me crap for so many years about today, and now you don’t even know…” 

“Oh my God,” Donna said with a laugh. “It’s our anniversary. The first one.” 

“Twelve years ago today, exactly, I walked into my office to find you there,” he said. “And like I said, it was the best thing to ever happen to me. So…” he took her hand again, “I ask again, Donnatella, will you please marry me?” 

She bit her bottom lip and smiled at him. “Yes Joshua,” she answered. “I will.” They both leaned forward into a passionate kiss. Then Josh pulled away and slipped the ring onto her finger before kissing her again. 

He grinned at her. “I love you,” he stated. 

“I love you too,” she replied. She shivered slightly as he wrapped his arms around her. 

“Are you cold?” he asked, shrugging out of his coat to put it over hers. 

“Josh you’ll freeze,” she said. “It feels like it could start snowing.” 

“I’m fine,” he said wrapping his overcoat around her shoulders. “I have my jacket. Let’s get you home.” 

When they found a taxi, Donna insisted Josh take his coat back. It was a short cab ride back to the apartment. When they got upstairs, Donna noticed Josh was staring at her with a funny smile on his face. “What?” she asked. 

“I’m kind of surprised you said yes,” he replied. “I… I didn’t know if you would want to…” he trailed off and drop his eyes to the ground. 

“Get married?” she finished. 

“Well, more if you’d want to marry me, I guess,” he replied. 

Donna laughed and crossed the room to him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she kissed him. “You’re the only person I’ve ever wanted to marry,” she replied. “From the first day I met you,” she added. “Just you.” 

“Really?” he asked. 

“Really,” she assured him. “What would you like to do now?” 

“I can think of a few ideas,” he said, pulling her into a passionate kiss. She laughed and grabbed his hand before leading him into the bedroom. 

***********************

Josh only worked a half day the following Saturday and came home by lunchtime. Donna was sitting at the dining room table looking at information about her pregnancy and the baby online. “How big is the little one now?” Josh asked sitting down next to her and placing the bag of take out he had picked up on the table. 

“The size of a lime,” Donna said. “I think it is weird they always use food objects as description.”

“That is odd,” Josh agreed. 

“His, or her, eyes are in the right place now.” 

“Really? That’s good,” Josh asked. He reached out and touched Donna’s stomach. “I still can’t quite believe all this.” 

“You say that everyday,” Donna replied with a laugh. “You better get used to it soon.” 

“I know,” he replied. “How are you feeling? Any better than this morning?” 

“A bit,” Donna replied. “Way better than last night though. Why do you think they call it morning sickness? It should be all hours of the day sickness.” 

“I’m sorry,” Josh stated with a sympathetic smile. “Do you want your lunch?” 

“Just the soup and some crackers. I’ll save my sandwich until I feel better.” Donna smiled as he got up and prepared their food in the kitchen. It was funny. She had known Josh for so long, and they had lived together for nearly three years, but she never would have imagined he would have been the way he was with her. He had always just seems so wrapped up in himself; she never would have thought he would so completely put someone else first. It had only become more so since she got pregnant too. 

Josh came back to the table with a bowl of soup for Donna and his own sandwich. “So what else is going on with the pregnancy this week?” he asked. “Oh I forgot your crackers, hold on.” He hurried back into the kitchen and returned with crackers. “Sorry,” he said. 

Donna smiled at him as he sat down and began to eat. “You’re going to be a really good dad,” she said. 

Josh stopped and set down his sandwich. “Do you think?” he asked. “Really?” 

She nodded. “Of course,” she answered. “I didn’t know you could be so…” 

“Nice?” he asked skeptically.

“No I knew that,” she replied, taking a bite of soup. “I guess I never guessed you’d be so nurturing.” 

“You didn’t think there was anything left that you didn’t know about me, huh?” he replied. 

“I should have known. If after Gaza I hadn’t been so…” 

“Let’s not talk about it,” he said cutting her off. “Let’s stick with me being a good dad.” 

“A great dad,” Donna said with a smirk. “So pregnancy this week,” she began. “I was reading about if I should have an amniocentesis.” 

“That’s the test right,” Josh recalled,” For, uh, chromosomal disorders.” He paused. “Do you need one? I remember the doctor saying we’d talk about it. There are risks right?” 

“Yeah,” Donna replied. “But I’m at higher risk for some disorders… because of my age.” 

Josh nodded solemnly. “We can talk to the doctor at the appointment Monday,” he said before turning his attention to his sandwich. 

Donna kept reading off the computer as she ate her soup. She noticed after a couple minutes that Josh had essentially stopped talking, which was unusual for him particularly when she was reading about the pregnancy. He always wanted to be involved. This was one of the things she loved about him. Her sister-in-law had told her how her brother had barely listened to anything dealing with her pregnancy. 

“Josh?” she asked after another moment. “Are you okay?” 

“Yeah fine,” he replied a bit too quickly. 

“What’s wrong?” she pressed. “Come on, I know you.” He sighed and looked at her. His sad eyes made her want to hug him. “Josh,” she repeated. 

“Fine,” he muttered. “I was just thinking about what you said about your age.” 

“Yeah,” she said. “Don’t worry about it. I’m healthy. The doctor isn’t worried about the pregnancy or the baby.” 

“No I know,” he said. “Donna, it just that, well, I’m ten years older than you.” 

She laughed. “I know,” she replied. “That’s not news, Josh. Fortunately for you, you are a man. They haven’t proven any issues to the baby from fathers being older.” 

“I’m not thinking health wise, but…” he trailed off for a moment. “Donna, we are going to take our kid to elementary school and people will think I’m her grandfather or something.” 

“Oh Josh,” Donna said with a smile. He had such a dejected look on his face that she leaned in a kissed him. “People won’t think that, and even if they did, screw ‘em,” she stated. “You act like your twenty, and I’m sure that will matter way more to our kid than how old you actually are.” 

“Yeah?” he asked. 

“Yeah,” she replied leaning in and kissing him again. 

**********************  
Monday evening Josh and Donna left the White House early in order to get to a doctor’s appointment. Donna’s doctor, Dr. Akin, had helped accommodate their odd schedules by staying later for her appointments. It seemed they had more power in Washington than they might have believed. 

They were waiting in the exam room. Josh was wandering around looking at the diagrams and posters on the wall. “Hey Donna do you think…” 

“Looking at that poster Josh, I don’t want to think anything about it,” she snapped quickly.

“Okay,” Josh said, hands raised in surrender. “I didn’t mean anything by it…” 

The doctor interrupted with a knock at the door before entering. “Evening Donna, how are you feeling?” 

“A little uncomfortable right now actually. I think I have heartburn maybe,” Donna replied. 

“That would be completely normal at this point,” Dr. Akin replied. “Josh how are you?” 

“I’m fine. Thank you,” Josh stated quickly. 

“Beautiful ring Donna,” the doctor said with a smile. “When did you two get engaged?” she asked. 

“Just a few days ago,” Donna stated and offered Josh the first smile he had gotten from her since they left the White House. 

He smiled back. “I was going to propose anyway,” he stated. “Even if she hadn’t been pregnant,” he explained. 

“She doesn’t care Josh,” Donna said. “He seems to think people will think less of him for not asking before,” she stated. 

“You aren’t alone in that,” Dr. Akin stated as she readied a machine. “I’ve noticed a few fathers who have felt that way. What I find, is that nobody really cares how or when anyone else gets engaged. They only care when it is them.” She flipped a page on Donna’s chart. “So your weight gain looks good,” she said. “How is your nausea?” 

“Better,” Donna replied. “Not totally gone, but better.”

“That’s good. Hopefully it will go away entirely in a few weeks. Exercising?” she asked. 

“Yeah,” Donna said. “When I have time. I’ve been busy at work.” 

The doctor nodded. “So I think we should do a screening for chromosomal disorders today, and we can pursue an amniocentesis if we see any red flags. Does that sound okay to you?”

Donna nodded. “Yeah,” she said. “I wanted to ask about that.” 

“Any other concerns?” Dr. Akin asked. 

“No,” Donna replied. 

“Alright then.” Dr. Akin turned to Josh. “Josh, why don’t you sit down here.” She indicated a chair. “And we will listen for the baby’s heart beat.” 

Josh sat down quietly and waited while Dr. Akin readied the Doppler. He took Donna’s hand and smiled at her. She returned his smile. Donna jumped a little as the doctor moved the Doppler around. “Sometimes they can be a little tough to find,” she explained. 

Josh squeezed Donna’s hand. Suddenly, the room filled with a noise. “Is that it?” Josh asked. “It sounds like a train.” 

“That’s it,” Dr. Akin replied. “That is your baby’s heartbeat.” 

“Wow,” Josh muttered. 

“That’s incredible,” Donna said grinning at him.


	3. Week 18

******************* Week 18 ********************

Donna was sitting in a meeting with Mrs. Santos, Annabeth, and a handful of other members of the First Lady’s staff discussing the direction they were planning on moving their agenda. Donna suddenly jumped slightly and placed her hand on her ever-expanding belly. 

“Donna?” Helen asked. “Are you alright?” 

“Uh,” Donna began, “I, I think I felt the baby move.” She paused for a moment and smile. “There it goes again.” She laughed. “Wow that feels weird.” 

“How exciting,” Annabeth said with a smile. 

“Yeah,” Donna agreed. “Enough about me though. Let’s get on focus. So the reproductive health care agenda?” she posed. 

Donna had done her best to not let this latest development in her pregnancy distract her at work. When she got home, she heated up some leftovers and made a fresh salad for them to have for dinner. She was excited to tell Josh about feeling the baby move when he got home. 

However, when he finally did get home, Josh was obviously withdrawn. “I’m going to shower before dinner,” he said simply moving past her into the bedroom. 

“Okay,” Donna replied. She sat down to wait for him with some of the work she had brought home, but ended up reading about pregnancy stuff instead. 

Josh reemerged in a slightly better mood. He kissed Donna and smiled at her. “What’s for dinner?” he asked. 

“Lasagna and salad,” she answered hopping up to get it. 

“Sounds good,” he replied following her into the kitchen. “What do you want to drink?” 

“Milk,” she replied. She’d never been much of a fan of milk until she got pregnant. It was one of the funny things about pregnancy; the way her tastes were changing. 

They sat down at the table with dinner and ran through the basics of their days. Finally, Donna grinned at Josh and said, “So something interesting happened in a meeting today.”

“What’s that?” he asked. 

“I felt the baby move,” she said. “For the first time.” 

“Wow,” Josh said, though he sounded less enthused that she thought he would have. 

“It’s the right time and everything,” she said. “I guess I should have been expecting it, but…” 

“Yeah,” Josh muttered. He seemed to be shutting down again. Donna let it go. It had sounded like he had a rough day at work. 

***********************

“What do you mean you don’t know if you can get away?” Donna hollered at Josh in his office. 

“Be quiet,” he said closing the door. “People will hear you.” 

“I don’t give a shit if people hear me,” Donna yelled again. She usually tried to keep in check her emotions around the White House. She knew her hormones could get her a little riled up, but she would have been mad about this no matter what. “Josh you’ve come to every other appointment. How could you miss this one? We are going to do the sonogram!” she exclaimed. 

“I’m too busy here Donna,” he replied. “We have a situation.” 

The truth was Josh had been shut down and withdrawn all week and even more so when anything had to do with the pregnancy or the baby. Donna had been puzzling it over and come to a terrifying conclusion. She had been trying to convince herself it wasn’t true though. Suddenly, she knew she had to ask. “Josh, do you not want this baby anymore?” She had tried to be strong but tears began to stream down her face as she asked, and she collapsed onto the couch as her body shook with sobs. 

He stood looking at Donna completely dumbfounded on how to answer the question and what to do about her crying. She calmed down slightly and looked at him. “Josh?” she pressed. 

Josh took a deep breath and answered honestly. “I don’t know.” He just stared at her and she stared back. 

Finally, she spoke. “Well the appointment is on Friday evening. That gives you two days to figure it out.” She stood and stormed out of his office. 

He collapsed behind his desk. He imagined he could have screwed up more if he tried, but he wasn’t quite sure how. He stood up and began to pace. He needed advice. He considered walking over to Sam’s office. Sam could usually be counted on to give him good advice both politically and personally. But then, Sam had never been in this place, so he would have a hard time understanding. 

Josh sighed and sat at his desk again. He thought through the men he considered his friends who had children. He knew the President would offer advice, but he didn’t want to bother him. Danny would probably just laugh at him and then tell CJ who would call him back and laugh at him. He sighed and stared at the phone suddenly struck by an idea. 

He picked up the phone and dialed. He took a deep breath while he waited for someone to answer. 

“Hello,” came the greeting from the other end. 

“Hello sir, it’s Josh… Lyman,” he said hesitantly. 

There was a laugh at the other end of the phone. “Hello Josh,” Jed Bartlet said with a smile. “I love how you introduce yourself that way. As if I could forget who you are.” 

“Just habit I guess sir,” he replied. 

“How’s Donna?” Jed asked. “Oh Abbey is reminding me to ask where our wedding invitation is? You haven’t forgotten to invite us have you?”

“No sir,” he replied. “Donna wants to wait until after the baby. She didn’t want to rush the wedding just because of the baby,” Josh tried to explain. 

“That makes sense,” Jed replied. “And Donna’s doing well. She and the baby are healthy?” 

“Yes sir,” Josh answered simply.

“How about you Josh?” Jed added. “How are you doing with everything?” 

Josh sighed. “That is actually why I am calling sir,” he said. “I, I need some advice, and I don’t really have anyone to ask.” He took a deep breath. “I don’t want to bother you sir, but you know since my father and well Leo…” 

“Josh,” Jed said. “It is always my pleasure to be able to give you advice. What’s going on?” 

“I did something decidedly idiotic today sir,” Josh admitted. “I told Donna I wasn’t sure I wanted the baby.” 

“Isn’t it a little late for that decision?” Jed asked. 

“Yes sir,” Josh said. “And the thing is up until this week, I was absolutely positive this was the best thing to ever happen to me.” Josh sighed. “I mean Donna obviously is the best thing to ever happen to me. After so many years, for us to be together and happy. Then for us to have a baby, it just seemed like a miracle.”

“It probably was,” Jed agreed. “Josh, what made you say that to Donna today?” 

Josh laughed slightly. “You sound like Stanley,” he replied. He sighed and admitted, “I’m scared.” 

“Of having the baby?” Jed asked. “That’s normal. Before Liz, I was petrified,” he admitted. 

“Yeah and, well, I’m scared I’ll be a terrible father,” Josh confessed. “I honestly hadn’t thought a ton about it before and then…” he trailed off. 

“What happened Josh?” Jed asked. 

“Monday Margaret, she stayed on as my assistant you know, well Monday her nanny had to leave early and so she brought Margaret’s daughter to the White House for a few minutes before Margaret went home. I was just working on some stuff in my office and Margaret had to go do some things, so she asked if I would watch her, Jamie, her daughter for a couple of minutes.” 

“Mhm,” Jed said. He had a feeling he knew where this was going. “Continue.”

“Well, she was only gone for maybe ten minutes, but I suddenly realized I had absolutely no idea what to do with a child. At one point, she asked where her mom was and started to cry. All I could think through the entire experience was that I am not cut out to be a parent.” 

“Josh did you talk to Donna about any of this?” Jed asked. 

Josh chewed on his bottom lip a little. “No sir,” he replied. 

“I think you should,” Jed replied. “But, let me give you some advice first. No one knows how to be a parent until they are. You’ll learn as the baby grows, and you’ll learn a lot of it from making mistakes.” 

“Yeah,” Josh said. “I’ve read all the books Donna’s bought and… I just don’t want to let them down.” 

Jed smiled and laughed slightly. “Josh you know what I have always admired about you?” he asked. 

“What?” Josh asked. He had developed a rather good relationship with the former president since he had left the White House. President Bartlet was one of his go-to people for advice on the tough stuff, but he had never thought much about President Bartlet admiring him. 

“The way you care for people,” Jed answered. “Your great capacity for love. I will never forget the day you returned your NSA card or the way you dropped everything when Donna was hurt in Gaza.”

“I would have thought those would have been seen as a weakness in my ability to do my job,” Josh replied. 

“I guess they could have been, but I think it is your intense need to care for people that makes you great at your job, whether they are people you have never met or people you love deeply.” Jed explained more, “Donna loves you. To hear her talk about you and your interest in the baby and the pregnancy, it’s incredible. She knows you will be a great father, just as I do. And we know it because of your capacity to love.” 

Josh remained silent and just thought. Jed asked another question. “Have you heard the baby’s heart beat?” he asked. 

Josh felt the grin spread across this face. “Yeah,” he replied. “We did just over a month ago.” 

“What did you think?” Jed asked. 

“It was unbelievable,” Josh replied. “The first real evidence that there was a baby in there.” 

Jed smiled. “See Josh, you already love the baby. Wouldn’t you do anything for him or her? For Donna?” 

“Yes,” Josh answered confidently. 

“Then you already have the first skill of being a good father down. Now here are the rest of my tips,” he stated. “Whether you have a boy or a girl teach him or her to climb a tree, whistle, ride a bike, and throw a ball. If you have a girl, I’ll have a lot of other advice since I am well versed in that experience. For now, talk to Donna.” 

“Thank you sir,” Josh replied. 

“And Josh,” Jed said. “Call me anytime.” 

“Thank you sir,” he echoed. “I appreciate it.” 

************************

Donna was in bed reading when Josh got home. She didn’t look up when he entered the bedroom. He sat down on his side of the bed. “Donna,” he said. “I’m really sorry.” When she still didn’t look up, he held out the package in his hand. “I got you a present.” 

She looked up. “Josh,” she said warningly. 

“Just open it,” he said. “Then we need to talk about today, well about this week,” he stated. 

“Let’s talk first,” she said. “Then I’ll decide if I want the present.” 

“I talked to the President today,” he said. 

“You talk to the President everyday,” she replied. 

“Not Santos, President Bartlet. I called him for advice,” he explained. 

“About what?” she asked. 

“About what I said in my office Donna,” he said. “I didn’t mean it. I mean I meant it, but I didn’t mean…” He sighed and ran his hand through his hair. “I’m such an idiot,” he stated. He looked at her. “Donna,” he began again, “I’m scared.” 

“Of what?” she asked confused. 

“I’m afraid I’ll be a terrible father. That I’ll disappoint you and let down you and the baby,” he rambled. “I’m just so scared.” He buried his face in both his hands. 

“Really?” Donna asked. She had to really try not to laugh. Josh nodded silently without looking up. “Josh do you remember the night your proposed?” she asked. 

“Of course,” he said finally looking up. 

“Earlier that evening, you said you would have freaked out if you had gotten someone else pregnant.” 

“Yeah,” he replied. “Apparently it just took longer…” he trailed off as she interrupted him. 

“Do you remember what I said?” she asked. “I said that I would have freaked out if it had been with someone else too.” She smiled at him. “It’s because it’s you that I have never been scared about having this baby. I mean I’ve been scared, but I know that you’ll be there for me and for the baby and that makes it better.” She leaned in and kissed his cheek. 

“Yeah?” Josh asked. 

“Yeah,” she replied. “Josh you really are an idiot sometimes.”

“I know,” he agreed. “That’s why I need you though.” 

“I know,” she stated. “But Josh, is that the only reason you said what you did today in your office?”

He smiled at her. “Yes,” he said. “I do want us to have the baby; I’m still scared though.” 

“That’s okay,” Donna replied. “We can be scared together. I’ll open my present now.” She tore into the paper and laughed. “That’s so cute,” she said. It was a little white onesie with the democratic donkey on it and words written beneath it that said, “Democrat in training.” 

***********************

Josh rearranged every meeting he had to on Friday to ensure he was in Donna’s office by 5:45, so they could leave for her appointment. He was still slightly panicked about the prospect of being a father. 

He had begun to discover that the fact that everything felt so real now was the cause of his increased tension. Early on in the pregnancy it had all been very abstract. The idea of the baby had been just that an idea. Now, Donna was so obviously pregnant there was no abstract about it. They had heard the baby’s heartbeat multiple times. Now it was real, concrete, and he was petrified. 

They sat in the exam room of the doctor’s office as always. Josh couldn’t help himself from looking at the odd posters or reading pamphlets. “Don’t read anymore of those aloud,” Donna muttered. “They scare me.” 

“Sorry,” he said genuinely. 

The doctor came in then and Josh scooted his rolling stool out of the way for the routine things. “Are you ready to see the baby?” Dr Akin asked. 

“Definitely,” Donna said. 

“Yeah,” Josh agreed though he didn’t feel so confident. 

“There is a chance we can determine sex with the ultrasound,” Dr Akin explained. “Would you like to know?” 

This had been a topic of great debate. They had both changed their minds multiple times and each other’s just as often. Finally, they had decided to wait. 

“We are going to wait until the delivery,” Donna said. “We want the surprise then.” 

“Alright,” the doctor said. She began moving the sensor around on Donna’s stomach while Josh scooted his stool near her head. He took her hand and smiled at her. “Alright,” the doctor said doing something to the machine and then turning the screen to face them. “There is your baby.” 

Josh stared at the screen in complete silence. He felt Donna’s grip on his hand tighten. “That’s amazing,” she said. She turned and looked at Josh expectantly, but he just stared at the screen. “Josh?” she asked. 

“I’ll leave you two for a moment,” Dr. Akin said and she stepped out of the room. 

He continued to look at the screen scooting the stool a little further forward. Finally he spoke. “Wow,” he whispered. He smiled and finally turned his head away from the screen. He looked at Donna. “Wow,” he said. “It’s our baby.” 

“It is,” Donna said. 

“I’m not scared anymore,” Josh said. “Look how little it is. How can something so little and perfect be scary?” 

“Look at its nose,” Donna said pointing at the screen. 

“And its fingers,” Josh said. He leaned down and kissed her. “We’re going to be a family,” he added. “I never really thought about it like that before.” She smiled up and him and kissed him again.


	4. Week 24

*****************24 Weeks******************

“Come on dance with me,” Josh said grinning, so his dimples showed. 

“God save me if the baby has those dimples,” Donna replied taking his hand and standing up. Josh had read in one of her books the week before that the baby’s feeling of movement had increased and he or she could feel Donna dance. He had taken to insisting they dance nearly every night in the living room. At first Donna had laughed at him, but then she had come to enjoy the intimacy of the moment. It felt nice to be in Josh’s arms, to have him singing quietly along with the music in her ear. 

He pulled her into his arms as Coldplay’s Yellow began to stream through the speakers. They swayed gently to the music. Josh ran his hand gently over Donna’s back while the other held her hand in his. As the words came through the speakers, Josh echoed in her ear, “You know I love so.” She rested her head on his shoulder. They continued to dance until the song ended. 

“Josh my back hurts,” Donna said. “I need to lie down.” 

He nodded. “Let’s go to bed,” he stated. “I can give you a backrub.” 

She smiled at him as he reluctantly released her from his arms and turned off the stereo. She took his hand as they walked into the bedroom. “You’re cute you know,” she said. 

“Yeah?” he asked. “What’d I do to earn that?” 

“The dancing,” she replied. “It’s sweet. Not to mention the backrubs.” 

“You’re just sucking up so I’ll rub your feet too,” Josh came back with back. 

“Will you?” she asked sitting on the bed as she pulled off the new maternity top she had worn to work that day. He looked at her incredulously. “Please?” she begged. 

Josh laughed. “Yeah,” he conceded. “Only because you’re carrying my child though.”

She ran her hand across her stomach. “If I weren’t carrying your child, my feet wouldn’t be this swollen,” she rejoined. 

“Fair enough,” he stated. “What nightgown do you want?” he asked. 

“My new pink one,” she replied. “It’s the most comfortable.” He tossed it to her, and then he stripped down to his boxers and undershirt. “Baby’s kicking,” she said. 

Josh crossed to the bed and sat next to her where she was now leaning against the headboard. He placed a hand on her stomach. He had yet to feel the baby kick, and every time she told him she could feel it he tried. “I still don’t feel anything,” he said frustrated. 

“You will soon,” she replied. “All the books say in the next few weeks.” She smiled at him. “Backrub?” 

“Yeah,” he said. “Lay on your side.” Donna obliged turning away from him. Josh began to gently rub her back. 

“So there is something we have been avoiding, and I’m not sure why,” she said quietly. 

“Mhmm?” Josh murmured. 

“Names,” she replied. “Don’t you think by now we should have a list by now.” 

“We’ve talked about some,” Josh replied. 

“Yeah, but we haven’t made a real list. We need to do that,” she stated. 

“Okay,” he agreed. “What’s your favorite for a girl?” 

“I used to really like the name Madison,” Donna stated. “But it is really common now, and I refuse to give my child a really common name. It sucks to have a bunch of other kids in class with your same name.” 

“Donnatella was commonplace there in Wisconsin was it?” Josh asked. She reached back and smacked his arm. “It’s too bad it is so popular though,” Josh said. “I love it. Like James Madison.” 

“Oh geez,” Donna replied. “Does my kid have to have a political name? You really are monomaniacal, aren’t you?” She laughed. 

Josh pouted slightly. “I’m passionate,” he defended. 

“I know, and I love it,” she said, leaning forward to kiss him. “And you.” She leaned back again. 

“I know I mentioned it before but, can I make a request for a boys name?” Josh asked. 

“Of course,” Donna answered.

“Noah,” Josh said with a sad smile. He dropped his eyes to his lap. “I know we talked about it for a middle name a few months ago, but I think I’d like to consider it for a first name if we have a boy.” 

Donna reached out and took his hand. “Perfect,” she replied. 

“Do you have any other boy names?” he asked

“I’ll feed into your political thing. What about Carter?” 

Josh smiled. “Not too popular?” he asked. 

“At least it isn’t in the top ten. You like it?” she asked, rolling on to her back and wiggling her feet. Josh obliged moving to the end of the bed to rub her feet. 

He nodded. “Yeah. Any girl’s names that you like that aren’t too popular?” 

“I don’t know. Everything we’ve talked about just seems not quite right.” She paused for a moment. “Josh?” she began. “I know we haven’t really talked about it, but if it is a girl, do you want to consider naming her after your sister?”

“No,” he said quickly. “Maybe for a middle name,” he added. “But I think it would be too hard.” Donna nodded quickly. “Do you have anyone in your family you want to consider naming the baby after?” he asked. 

“Not really,” Donna replied. “What about someone who isn’t biological family?” she asked. “Like CJ or Sam or President Bartlet?” 

“No,” Josh exclaimed. “No one living, it’s a rule.” 

“A rule?” Donna asked with a laugh. 

“Jewish tradition teaches that,” Josh explained. “My parents ignored it and named me after my mom’s uncle. He died the week after I was born.” 

Donna smiled at him. “Okay,” she agreed. “CJ would never forgive us if we named our daughter Claudia anyway.” She smirked at Josh, but it quickly transformed into a yawn. 

“Bed time?” he asked. 

She nodded. “Yeah, I’m exhausted.” She climbed under the covers and pulled her two extra pillows into position. One under her stomach and one between her legs. “I just wish I could get comfortable,” she muttered. 

“I’m sorry,” Josh replied. “I love you.” 

“If you really loved me, you’d be carrying the baby,” she replied. 

“No matter how much I love you, I can’t alter biology,” Josh replied leaning forward to kiss her. 

They lay in silence for a while before Donna said, “What about Kennedy?” 

“What about Kennedy?” Josh asked. 

“For a name?” she said. “What do you think of Kennedy? It’s political, but cute.” 

“For a girl?” Josh questioned. 

“That’s what I was thinking, but it could work for either,” Donna replied. 

Josh smiled. “I like it, especially since he was a Democrat.” 

“You are obsessive,” she said with a laugh. “Do you know what your name means?” Donna asked after a moment of silence.

“Something about god,” he replied casually. “God is salvation, I think. What’s yours mean?” 

“Just means woman,” she answered. “I like the idea of a name with meaning. Even if it just has meaning to us. I guess I don’t really mind that being connected to politics.” 

“You mean because politics is us,” Josh said. 

“Exactly,” she agreed. 

***********************

Donna was pacing her office slowly. She’d been sitting too long in one position. Annabeth was sitting in a chair at the conference table taking notes as they discussed an upcoming press conference. “I don’t know how I handle another fourteen weeks of this,” Donna stated. 

“You do look fairly miserable,” Annabeth said sympathetically. 

“Oh and the baby is kicking like a maniac,” Donna added. She placed her hand on her stomach. Suddenly, she noticed something different. “Annabeth,” she asked. “Can we finish this up later. I need to run over to Josh’s office.” 

Josh was sitting at his desk, head in hands, reading a briefing report for the Department of Defense when Donna hurried in. “Are you okay?” he asked looking up with alarm. 

“Fine,” she replied. She crossed to him and took his hand in hers. “Feel this,” she added, placing his hand on her stomach. 

“Donna, I…” he began. “Oh shit!” he exclaimed. “I felt it.” He quickly placed his other hand next to the first one. “That is amazing. I can feel him kicking, or her.” He grinned up at Donna. “Wow.” 

“I know,” she said smiling back at him. 

“You look tired,” he said changing the subject. “You should sit down.” He led her to the couch. 

“I need to get back to the office,” she replied. “I have a meeting in fifteen minutes.” 

“So sit down for a minute,” he said. “Then I’ll walk you back.” 

She smiled at him. “You’ve become…” she trailed off. 

“What?” he asked. “Soft?” 

“No, just well… yeah I guess that works as a word,” she replied with a laugh. 

“I love my fiancé and child,” he stated. “Sue me.” 

“I like it,” she replied. “I just don’t know how the American public would feel.” 

“I don’t particularly care right now,” he said. 

“Who are you, and what have you done with Josh Lyman?” she joked. 

“Haha,” he replied. “Come on, I’ll walk you back to your office.” He helped her up from the couch and placed his hand gently on her back leading her down the hallway. When they reached her office, he kissed her tenderly. “I’m leaving early tonight,” he said. “I’ll come get you so we can go home together.” 

“Okay,” she said nodding. “Can we get Italian on the way home?” 

“Definitely,” he agreed. “I love you.” 

“I love you too,” she said as he walked back down the hall. 

*************************

They were walking in the apartment that night when Donna pointed out to Josh that the baby was kicking again. He had asked about six times since they had left work. Instantly, he set down the takeout and placed a hand on her belly as she sat on the couch. “I am so tired,” she said. “This is getting harder everyday.” 

“I’m sorry,” Josh replied. “So, I have bad news,” he added leaning back against the couch next to her but keeping his hand in place. 

“You have to go with the President next week, huh?” Donna asked though it wasn’t really a question. 

“It’s an election year,” Josh stated with a sigh. He hated that he was going away. More than that, he hated that he knew it would become an increasingly frequent issue. “Do you hate me?” he asked. 

“Yes,” Donna replied dryly, but she kissed him on the cheek anyway. “You can make it up to me by bringing me dinner here, so I don’t have to get up.” 

“Your wish,” he said, “is my command.” He got up and dished their dinner onto plates before taking it to the living room. 

Donna had taken off her shoes and had her feet resting on the coffee table. They ate dinner and chatted casually. Some about work, some about the baby, some about other topics. 

“So my book said we should narrow our list of names to a top ten this week,” Donna stated. “I thought maybe we should work on that tonight.” 

“Do we even have ten names on the list?” Josh asked. 

“Well considering we haven’t made a list I thought that should be a first step,” she replied. When they had finished eating, she had leaned her head against his shoulder. 

“Here, lean forward,” he said reaching for a pad of paper off the coffee table. He leaned back, and Donna returned to her prior position. Josh drew a line vertically down the middle of the paper and wrote “Boy” on one side and “Girl” on the other. “Okay,” he said. “Boy names?” 

“Noah,” she stated. “And Carter.” 

He wrote them down. “Jefferson?” he asked.

“As in Davis?” she replied with a funny look. 

“Ehh,” he said. “I was thinking as in Thomas Jefferson, but now that is all I’ll think of, never mind.” 

“These political names of yours have some risks,” she stated. “But put Kennedy on the girl’s side. I love that one.” 

“What about Grace for a girl?” Josh asked. “We talked about it before.” 

“Yeah, I like it,” Donna said. “It’s cute. Put it on the list. I like Hailey too.” 

“No,” Josh said. “I had a bad experience with a girl named Hailey in third grade.” 

Donna laughed. “Fair enough,” she stated. “We need more names.” 

“Why?” Josh asked. “We have two for each. Doesn’t that more than cover the bases?” 

“Most people have longer lists,” she replied. 

“Well then most people apparently have decision making problems,” he stated. “I think we are good here. We’ve talked about other names over the past few months; we just didn’t like them.” 

Donna nodded. “Okay, but if you think of any others, you’ll tell me right?” she asked. She nuzzled closer to him. 

“Of course,” he stated. “We’ll leave the list out.” He dropped it on the coffee table and tightened his grip around her.


	5. Week 30

********************Week 30************************

Josh wandered into the apartment just after midnight. He was careful to be quiet. He smiled when he saw Donna, curled on her side, asleep on the couch. He set down his suitcase and went over to the couch, sitting on the coffee table near her head. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Donna,” he whispered. “Donna love, you fell asleep on the couch.” 

“Mmm,” she murmured. Slowly she opened her eyes. “Josh,” she said with a smile, “You’re home.” 

“Yeah,” he said leaning down to kiss her softly. She sat up with some difficulty; he reached out to help her. He smiled at her but noticed something. “Donna, are you crying?” he asked. “What’s wrong?” 

“Nothing,” she said crying harder. “I’m just glad you’re back.” 

“You’re crying,” Josh said. He knew he should have adjusted to the amount Donna had cried throughout her pregnancy, but he still always worried. “Did something happen?” She nodded silently. “Let’s go to bed, and you can tell me,” he said. She nodded again. 

As Josh changed his clothes, Donna sat on the bed watching him. “I went to the first child-birthing class,” she stated quietly. 

Josh crossed out of the bathroom and sat on the bed with her. “I missed it,” he said. “I’m sorry. I wanted to go with you.” He’d been in Ohio and Iowa and somewhere else that was escaping him at the moment. The damn reelection campaign was taking a toll on him. “I didn’t think I’d have to travel with him this much,” he stated. “I’ll be here for the class this week,” he promised. 

“I know,” Donna said. “I know you don’t want to miss things.” 

“How was your doctor’s appointment?” he asked, crawling in bed next to her. 

She reached over to her nightstand. “I had them print you a copy,” she stated handing him an ultrasound picture. 

Josh smiled at it. He ran a hand through his disheveled hair. He was silent for a while and just stared at the picture. “I’m already failing at this,” he said quietly. 

“Oh Josh,” Donna said reaching out to touch his shoulder. “You aren’t failing.” 

“I feel like I am,” he said. “You tried to set up the crib,” he added. “I saw walking down the hallway. I should have been here to help you.” 

“You’ll be here tomorrow to do it,” Donna said. 

Josh nodded but remained silent. Donna left her hand on his shoulder. After a minute, he said, “Leo told me once that before Jenny left him. He told her that his job was more important than his marriage.” He sighed deeply. “Donna,” he said quietly. “It isn’t like that for me. You and the baby are more important.” 

“You’re thinking about quitting again aren’t you?” she asked. 

He nodded finally looking at her. “While we were flying back, I just kept thinking about everything I missed these past couple days and last week and what I’ll miss in the next couple weeks.” 

“Josh,” she said. “It is fine. You’ve been amazing for the entire pregnancy.” 

Josh shook his head. “What about when it isn’t about the pregnancy?” he questioned. “What about in two months when it is midnight feedings and diaper changes, or two years when it is first steps and birthdays, or five years when it is the first day of school and riding a bike, or…” He trailed off. 

“If the president is re-elected, we deal with that then. If he is, you’ll have the job for four years of our child’s life. Then, you can make a new decision.” Donna smiled at him. “Josh, you don’t want to quit your job. We can make that other life and keep our jobs.” 

“How?” he asked. 

“By prioritizing and delegating,” she stated. “Sam can do more so can other people.” 

“I’m going to let Otto and Lou take charge of the campaign,” Josh said. “After the trip to Florida in two weeks, I’m not going to go on the campaign trips anymore. I’m not his campaign manager; I’m the Chief of Staff.” 

Donna nodded and smiled. “That’s what I mean,” she said. 

“I really missed you,” Josh said placing a hand on her cheek. He leaned in and kissed her passionately. 

As his other hand traveled to her back and pulled her to him, Donna said, “Josh, how on earth can you possibly find me attractive now. I feel like I’m the size of a school bus.” 

He stopped where he had been kissing her neck and pulled back. He smiled and looked at her adoringly. “I think you are the most gorgeous woman in the world,” he said. 

Donna couldn’t help the smile that formed on her face as Josh returned his focus to her neck and trailed kisses down onto her collarbone. 

**********************

The following morning, a Saturday, Josh avoided the office. Instead, he found himself in awkward positions under and around the crib they had bought the baby as Donna read the directions to him. 

“Can’t I pay someone to do this?” he asked when a piece fell down. “I’m going to kill our child.” 

“You will not,” Donna said. “I have faith in you to do it.” 

He smiled back at her and ran a hand through his hair. “Okay,” he said. “What attaches to bracket C, crossbeam 3 or 4?” 

By lunchtime, they had the crib built and have moved on to assembling the changing table. They sat down at the table to eat sandwiches. “Did you decide on a paint color?” Josh asked. “I’m guessing we should paint sometime this week or next.” 

Donna nodded. “I like the green, but I can’t decide which color. I was thinking maybe we could do vertical stripes with both tones.” 

Josh looked hesitant. “Do you think we can manage that?” he asked. 

“I was reading about it online,” Donna replied. “We just need to use painters tape.” 

“Okay,” Josh said. “Whatever you want? When is the baby shower again?” 

“Next Saturday,” she answered. “Remember CJ and Danny are coming on Thursday. You and Danny need to do something Saturday.” 

“I think I might need to…” 

“Work doesn’t count,” Donna interrupted. “You need to entertain Danny.” 

Josh laughed. “You know me too well. Do you want to go buy the paint this afternoon and start on the walls?” he asked. 

“Really?” Donna asked. 

“Sure,” he replied with a smile. 

They had gone to the store and bought two shades of green paint, fresh lime and spring green. By the time Donna finished making dinner, Josh have finished the lighter coat of paint. He had a decent amount splattered in his hair. “I’ll do the stripes later in the week,” he said, scrubbing his hands in the kitchen sink before they ate. 

“Who knew you had a hidden talent for painting,” Donna said with a smirk. 

“Not me,” he responded as they sat down to eat. 

After dinner, they watched some TV, and Josh studied polling data his computer. He was still looking at the numbers when Donna got up to shower before bed. When she came back out, her hair wrapped in a towel and her bathrobe on, Josh was furiously typing. She watched him for a moment before saying, “Josh.” 

He looked up at her surprised. She knew that look. He had been so wrapped up in his work that he had probably forgotten she was even in the apartment. “Hi,” he said with a grin. “I was just… the numbers aren’t adding up. The President had a solid lead with the popular vote, but the breakdown of the electoral votes… it’s just off,” he said.

“You’ll figure it out,” she replied. “For now though, come to bed with me.” 

He nodded. “Okay,” he said standing. 

As they got into bed, Donna asked, “Can you hold me? The pillows don’t work as well to support my back. It’s better when you’re here.” 

Josh smiled at her before they lay down, her back to him. He scooted so he was directly behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She leaned back into him and sighed. “If it were up to me,” he whispered. “I’d never sleep without you.” 

She grabbed his hand and squeezed. “Me too,” she replied. 

Josh woke up in the middle of the night to a glow coming from the dining room. Donna wasn’t in bed. He padded out of the bedroom. “What are you doing?” he asked. 

“I couldn’t sleep,” she replied. 

“Why didn’t you wake me?” he asked. 

“I thought one of us should get some sleep. I’m just reading some articles,” she stated. “I was going to come back to bed soon.” 

“What articles?” he asked, sitting in the chair next to her and scooting to so he could see the screen. 

“Breast-feeding,” she replied. “I just finished reading a bunch about whether or not to have pain medication during labor.” 

Josh’s eyes widened. “It seems so real now that all the research and planning have to do with the baby and not the pregnancy,” he stated. “I thought you knew for sure you wanted to breastfeed,” he stated. 

“I do,” she replied. “I just was making sure I knew as much of what to expect as possible.” 

He nodded. “What about the pain medication?” he asked. “We haven’t talked about that.” 

“I’m actually considering a natural childbirth,” Donna stated. “But…”

“It’ll hurt?” Josh asked with a small smile. 

“I’m prepared for that,” she replied. “They say if you have a natural childbirth it is really important to have someone there to support and reassure you.” She looked at him thoughtfully. 

“That’d be me,” he said with a smile. “Donna you know I’ll be there for you, every second.” 

She nodded quickly. “I know,” she said. “You just can get a little… excited sometimes.” She smiled at him. 

“I can also be very sweet and supportive,” he stated echoing words she had used often of late.

She laughed. “Yes, you can.” She paused. “What about how you get queasy at medical stuff?”

“I think I could handle it for the birth of our child,” he stated. “Besides, I can just stay you know, near your head.” 

Donna laughed. 

“Come on,” he said taking her hand and shutting the computer. “Let’s go back to bed. I’ll rub your back until you fall asleep,” he added. 

****************************

Helen Santos had insisted on having Donna’s baby shower in the residence. So that Saturday morning, Donna found herself on the way to the White House, not for work. She and CJ drove over together. CJ and Danny had come over for dinner the night before. They had brought the baby, Michael, with them on this trip. He was an adorably sweet little boy, who at the moment was asleep in this car seat in the back seat of the car. 

Donna couldn’t have been happier to have CJ around. Somehow it was different than talking to women who had had their babies years before. CJ advice was based on very recent experience, especially the things having to do with the first year of having a child. 

When they got to the White House, CJ paused reminiscently. “Wow,” she said. “It’s weird to be back here.” 

Donna laughed. “Do you miss it?” she asked. 

“Not too much actually,” CJ replied as they were cleared through security and walked to the residence. “Having a life I love just as much helps. Danny and Mikey.” She added hoisting her son further up on her hip. 

“I’m glad you brought him. He is such a cutie, but in a way I’m still sorry you didn’t leave him with Josh and Danny,” Donna replied. “Josh still gets nervous that he isn’t going to be good with the baby.” 

“I think Danny felt the same way,” CJ replied. “He got over it as soon as Mikey was born though.” 

Donna nodded. Helen appeared at that moment. “Oh good you’re here. Everyone will be here soon.” She ushered them into the room. “Helen Santos,” she introduced herself to CJ. “We met a couple times a few years back, but…”

“CJ,” she responded. “Thank you for inviting me today,” she said politely. 

“Well, you’re Donna friend, so of course it is my pleasure,” Helen replied as they all moved to sit on the couches. 

“This is all too much,” Donna said glancing around at the decorations and food in the room. 

Soon the remaining guests arrived. They ate and talked, played some shower games much to everyone’s amusement. Then they settled down to open gifts. Josh’s mom had sent one up; she was saving her visit for after the baby was born. Donna’s own mother had thrown her an earlier shower in Wisconsin when she had visited that spring. 

Mainly the gifts consisted of clothing, blankets, and diapers. CJ and Danny had gotten them a Pack n’ Play. Something Donna had been hoping to get to avoid buying herself. “It works great as a bassinet too,” CJ said. “We had Mikey sleep in his until we moved him into his own room.” 

“Thanks,” Donna replied. “It looks amazing.” 

Donna continued to open gifts. After yet another green and yellow outfit, Margaret said, “I can’t believe you really resisted finding out if it is a boy or a girl.” 

Everyone jumped in with their two-cents worth. Donna smiled politely. She had discovered that in this situation nobody actually cared why she hadn’t found out the sex. They just wanted to share their own opinions. Finally, Helen jumped in. “I think waiting is a great choice. We didn’t know the first time and it was a great motivator during labor.” Donna smiled at her gratefully. After all, who was going to argue with the First Lady. 

When Donna and CJ got back to the apartment, Josh and Danny were in the nursery. They made their way in that direction, but Danny came out and stopped them. “You can’t go in there yet,” he explained. 

“Why?” Donna asked. “Did you guys finish painting or something?” 

“Something like that,” Danny replied taking Michael from CJ. “How’s my boy?” he asked. 

“Spoiled rotten,” CJ answered. “He’s been gushed over by 25 women for the past three hours.” 

“How was it?” Josh asked exiting the baby’s room. 

“Good,” Donna replied. “There’s a lot of stuff in the car.” 

“We’ll unload after…” Josh trailed off smiling at her. “Come here,” he said taking her hand and leading her into the room. 

Donna froze in the doorway. Not only had Josh and Danny finished painting, but the entire room was done. The crib was situated under the window with a mobile, of owls and other birds in browns, blues, and greens, hanging above it. The changing table/ dresser was situated on another wall, and a rocking chair sat in the corner near the crib. Hanging on the walls were pictured Donna had framed the week before. An empty frame, in which she intended to place something with the baby’s name, was hanging above the changing table. 

“Josh,” she whispered. “It looks beautiful.” 

“Yeah?” he asked hopefully. “I can move things if you don’t like anything.” 

“It’s perfect,” she affirmed kissing him. “I’m so lucky.” The she thought about it a moment. Placing a hand on her stomach, she altered her comment. “We are so lucky.” 

“Me too,” he stated. “I’ll go unload the car now,” he said. “You should rest.” As he hurried out of the room, she crossed and sat in the rocking chair. 

CJ joined her in the nursery. “Danny is helping Josh,” she said. “Wow, it looks great,” she observed looking around the room. “Who would have thought that Josh Lyman would…” she trailed off at the look on Donna’s face. She laughed. “You did,” she stated. “How could you always see this side in him when none of the rest of us did.” 

“Because he let me,” Donna replied with a sigh. She looked at CJ as she sat on the floor and let Mikey crawl around the room. “He keeps talking about quitting his job.” 

“Really?” CJ said. “What do you say about it?” 

“I tell him not to,” she stated. “He’d miss it, and he is getting a lot better about delegating. Sam handles a lot more than he did the first couple years. The election is the issue right now.” 

CJ nodded understandably. “Danny and I wanted to get takeout from this Chinese place we used to like. You want to order some too? We’ll eat here instead of the hotel.” 

Donna nodded. “I’ve really missed you CJ,” she said with a smile. 

“Me too,” CJ replied.


	6. Week 36

******************36 Weeks**********************

“I’m going to die,” Donna groaned collapsing onto the couch. “I swear to God DC has never been this hot before.”

“Actually…” Josh began. 

“Don’t,” she snapped at him. 

He held his hands up in resignation. “Don’t shoot,” he said with a grin. “I have ice cream.” 

“Thank you lord,” she said taking the bowl from him and taking a bite. “It’s good you’re sucking up,” she added. “I wouldn’t be in this position without you.” 

Josh leaned down and kissed her. “You better remember that when we have an adorable child as the payoff, too.” 

Donna rolled her eyes. “I can’t believe I have like six more weeks of this. Four was bad enough,” she stated. They had just returned from her most recent doctors visit. Her doctor, who Donna now insisted was torturing her, had reassessed her due date and told them she was probably more likely to be delivering around the third or fourth week of September. “You’d think if they know your due date is likely to be two weeks off they could just tell you the correct one.” 

“She said that women were often two weeks early or two weeks late,” Josh restated. “They wouldn’t know which right at the beginning.” Donna gave him a dirty look. “But you are right, of course,” he added,” she is obviously cruel.” 

Donna smiled as he sat next to her. “That’s better,” she said. 

“So what did you decide about your mom coming?” he asked. “Do you want her here for the delivery?” 

“I told her to go ahead and come to Washington,” Donna said. “I haven’t decided about her being in the delivery room though. I think maybe I want it to just be us.” She smiled at him. “I think you should tell your mom to come up for the birth too.” 

“When do we have them come though?” Josh asked. “We could have end up with our mothers here for weeks.” He looked slightly panicked at the idea. 

“Better both of them than one of them,” Donna said. “They like each other maybe they can entertain each other then we don’t have to.” 

“That’s a good point,” Josh said. “How about we tell them to plan to come around the seventeenth? That’s right in the middle of the original due date and the new one,” he explained. “If it’s earlier they’ll miss if, but at least we won’t have our mothers here for like a month.” 

Donna nodded. “That sounds good,” she said. 

“Ready for story time?” Josh asked. He reached for a stack of picture books on the coffee table. 

“Yeah,” Donna replied. Josh had read an article about reading to the baby in utero and now did so ever night. “Which book are you planning on tonight?” 

“The Giving Tree?” he asked picking it up. “I love this one.” 

Donna smiled at him. “Sure,” she said. 

He began to read. “Once there was a tree…” When Josh finished reading, he looked up at Donna, who had tears running down her face. “Are you okay?” he asked sweetly. 

“Yeah,” she replied with a sniff. “It is just so sad.” 

Josh leaned up and kissed her. “You’re sweet,” he said. Then he planted a kiss on her belly. She sighed with contentment and ran her hand through his hair as he whispered to the baby. 

*********************

“I don’t really know what I am supposed to be looking for,” Josh said. “It is a hospital. It’s clean. That’s good.” 

“I don’t really know either,” Donna stated. She looked at the note card in her hand where she had made note of things to look for and ask on the tour. “Everything seems good,” she said. 

Josh nodded. “Let’s get to the class then,” he said. They had set up a tour of the maternity ward just before the beginning of their final birthing class. 

In class, the instructor reviewed everything that had been covered in prior classes. She ended with a recommended list of things to pack and plans to make for the final weeks of pregnancy. 

As they drove home, Josh said, “I have to go back in to the office.” He smiled at her apologetically. “I need to get stuff ready for the trip to Ohio.” 

“Okay,” Donna said trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice. 

“I promise it is my last trip,” Josh said. “And it is only two nights.” 

“What if…” Donna began, “What if I go into labor?” She knew it was unlikely, but she was terrified of Josh being gone at this point. 

“Then you’ll call me and I will be back in a few hours,” he said. “Just call right away.” He sighed. “You won’t anyway. It is too early.” 

“I know,” she said. “I’m just…” she trailed off. 

“It’s okay,” he said. “I’m scared to leave now too.” 

***********************

While Josh was gone, Donna tried to focus on work and getting things ready for the baby. She had to get everything settled at work to function for the couple months she would be out. She was determined to work as long as possible before delivery. 

She’d worked out a plan for her maternity leave with the First Lady. Her official maternity leave covered 12 weeks. During that time, she planned to work from home a bit on the very important things. After that time, she planned to work much shorter hours than she had in the past. Donna has insisted to Josh that he should keep his job. She has been insistent that she would too, but the more real the baby the more she was unsure how she would do that. 

As she wrapped up packing her bag for the hospital, she sat down on the bed and looked at the clock. She picked up her phone and dialed. 

“Is everything okay?” Josh asked quickly as he answered. 

Donna laughed gently. “It’s fine,” she said. “I was going to go to bed. I called to say goodnight.” 

“Oh okay,” Josh said. He motioned to the President that he was moving to sit on a bench near where they were all waiting for a band to finish playing before the President’s speech. “Can I talk to the baby?” Josh asked. 

Donna laughed but said, “Yes,” and turned the speakerphone feature on the phone and held it near her belly. 

Josh began to recite a book he had memorized. “Once there was a little bunny who wanted to run away. So he said to his mother…” When Josh finished reciting the first few pages of the story, he said, “I love you baby.” 

Donna smiled sadly. “The baby is kicking, Josh.” She sighed. “We miss you.” The baby always moved when Josh read to her belly. Just as it did when she sang or they danced. 

“I miss you too,” he replied. “I love you. I’ll be home soon.” 

She nodded even though he couldn’t see her. “I love you too,” she stated. 

Josh walked back over to the President after he and Donna had hung up their phones. President Santos patted Josh’s shoulder. He offered him an understanding smile. “You’re already memorizing books,” he stated. “You’ll be a good father.” 

Josh laughed. “If every part of it came that easily, I wouldn’t be worried.” 

“It doesn’t. You’re right,” Matt said. “But, just love him or her and that is your guide.” He patted Josh’s shoulder again as he mounted the stage. 

************************

Josh snuck into the apartment late again when he returned from the trip with the president. He expected Donna to be asleep, but instead heard her call out for him. 

“Why aren’t you sleeping?” he asked as he entered their bedroom. He was struck immediately by the look of terror on her face as she sat on the edge of the bed. “What’s wrong?” 

“I’m having pains. Like labor pains. I don’t know if it is false labor or if something is wrong.” She looked at him pleadingly. “Josh I’m scared.”

Josh took a deep breath. He wanted to completely freak out, but the look in Donna’s eyes told him that he needed to be strong for her. “It’s okay,” he said. “Let’s go to the hospital. Remember they said better safe than sorry.” 

Donna nodded. “Okay,” she said. She had been in the process of pulling on leggings and a sweater. Josh helped her stand and she slipped her feet into flip-flops. “Grab the bag,” she said. “Just in case.” 

Josh nodded. “How long have you been having pains? Why didn’t you call me?”

“Just a few minutes. I was going to call,” she said as he helped her down the stairs. 

It was all Josh could do not to barrel through the red lights they encountered. He didn’t need to put Donna and the baby in any danger though, so he stayed calm and drove sensibly. At one point, he looked over at Donna, and she was fidgeting nervously with her hands. He reached one of his out and took hers. “It’ll be okay,” he said. “Everything is fine.” 

“The books said even if you think it is false labor not to mess around if you aren’t over 37 weeks pregnant,” Donna said. “I kept thinking I’m almost 37 weeks, but then I thought if the due date was wrong I’m more like 34.” 

“It’ll be fine,” Josh repeated. “We’ll be there any moment. It’ll be fine.” The mantra he repeated was as much for himself as for Donna. He pulled the car into the parking lot of the hospital and parked as quickly as possible. The maternity ward was rather quiet when they entered. A nurse greeted them and attempted to reassure Donna, who finally seemed to be calming down. 

After nearly an hour, they were sent home with reassurances that despite the early date, Donna was in fact experiencing Braxton-Hicks pains. “I feel stupid,” Donna said as they reentered the apartment. 

“You shouldn’t,” Josh said. “What if it had been early labor? And now you have information on how to tell the difference and what to do,” he added in an assuring manner. “Let’s get you back to bed. I’m going to take a quick shower.” 

He helped Donna into bed and then went to shower. When he came back out, she was still awake reading one of her pregnancy books. “You’re still up,” he said slipping into bed next to her. 

“I missed you,” she said. 

“Me too,” he replied leaning over to kiss her. “My last trip until after the baby is born though.” He smiled. “I told the president it was certain. Sam can go, or Lou, or someone, but not me.” He grinned at her. He ran a hand over her belly. “How has the little one been treating you? Still tap dancing on your bladder?” 

“Yeah,” she replied. “We have a future soccer star on our hands I think.” She laughed a little. “The kicks are getting crazy; watch.” She pressed on one side of her belly firmly. Suddenly, a hard kick pressed against her hand. She moved it and laughed at the bulge appearing on her stomach. 

Josh laughed. “Wow,” he said. “Can I try?” 

Donna nodded. Josh pressed his hand where she had just had hers. “The other day,” she said. “I could see the outline of a foot.” 

“Are you kidding?” he asked. “That’s crazy.” She lifted her shirt and they continued the process trying to see if they could make out a foot or handprint. After a few minutes, Josh grabbed a book and began to read to the baby. Almost immediately, he or she calmed down. Donna slid down onto her side. Josh set the book down and curled up behind her. 

**********************

Josh had taken the next day off work. He woke late and found Donna in the kitchen. “The whole barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen image is really disturbing,” he muttered walking over to kiss her. 

“Not a turn on?” she asked. 

“Well,” he stated. “With you pretty much anything is a turn on, but no, not really.” 

“I find it a stretch to believe that I am a turn on in anyway in this state,” she replied motioning to her pregnant belly. 

“Now that,” Josh said crossing to her and wrapping his arms around her, “is where you are very wrong. You are gorgeous and glowing.” He kissed her passionately to prove his point. She laughed as he released her. Changing the subject, he asked, “Donna why are you making lasagna at 9:30 in the morning?” 

“The books said to cook and freeze food for after the baby comes. You know, when we will be too tired to do anything.” She smirked at him. 

“Oh, okay,” he replied. “What should I be doing? I only cook breakfast food,” he added. 

“I got the car seat,” she said. “You can try to figure out how to install it.” 

“Okay,” he responded grabbing his cup of coffee. “Is the car seat in the nursery?”

“Yeah,” she replied. Soon Josh was downstairs by the car attempting the installation. 

About thirty minutes later, Donna had the lasagna in the oven and was working on a chicken dish. Josh reappeared upstairs. “I need more coffee,” he said. “That was a hell of a lot harder than you would ever think.” 

“You got it though?” Donna asked. 

“Yeah,” he replied. “I got it. Safely installed, rear facing and everything just as it should be.” 

“You’re very impressive,” she replied snarkily. 

“Hey,” he retorted. “I did a good job.” 

“I’m sure you did,” she replied. “Would you put this in the oven for me? I need to sit down. My feet hurt.” 

“Sure,” Josh jumped up from where he sat and traded the chicken dish for the lasagna in the oven. “This is done?” he asked indicating the lasagna. 

“Yeah,” Donna said with a nod. Josh came back over and joined her on the couch. “I feel like all that is left to do is wait for the baby,” she said. “I’ve even washed the baby clothes, so they’ll be ready for him or her to wear.” 

“Maybe we should settle on names?” Josh asked. “Then we could work on birth announcements. You mentioned that last week.” 

“We suck at making this decision,” Donna said. “What makes you think we’ll decide now.” 

“Better to make it now than not be able to make it when the baby is already here,” Josh stated. 

“Okay,” Donna said. “Good point. Any ideas on how to make this decision?” 

“Yeah,” he said. “I got an idea at one of the rallies. I was talking to this guy. He and his wife have 3 kids. They’re in college now.” 

“You talked to a stranger?” Donna asked. “Like of your own accord?” 

“I do that,” Josh defended. “I’m not a snob.” 

“I know,” Donna said with a sweet smile. “Okay what was his idea?” 

“Well Bill said that he and his wife used to both write down their top boy and girl name on a piece of paper and then switch. If they had the same name, that was the name. If not, they tried again.” Josh smiled at her.

“Works for me,” Donna said. “Grab some paper.” 

Josh hurried to his desk across the room. “Here,” he said handing her a pen along with the pad of paper. 

Donna took the paper and stared at it. Finally she wrote on it. She glanced at Josh who seemed to have finished writing too. Silently, they traded papers. Josh grinned and Donna laughed. “I can’t believe they are exactly the same,” she said. Both of their papers had Kennedy and Noah written on them. 

“I can,” Josh said. “We’re in sync with each other.” He smiled again. “Want to try for middle names?” 

“Sure,” Donna said taking back her paper. She scrawled on it again. Kennedy Joan Moss-Lyman and Noah Carter Moss-Lyman. She passed the paper to Josh again. Looking at his paper, she stated, “This is just creepy. We even both hyphenated our last names.” 

“Well that is because you insisted you weren’t taking my name,” Josh said. “Which I still don’t understand.” 

“I like my name,” Donna replied. “It’s as simple as that.” 

“Okay,” Josh accepted. “So we have names. Now we do just have to wait.”


	7. Week 42

*********************Week 42**************************

“If the baby doesn’t make an appearance soon,” Donna growled, “I’m reaching up there and…” 

Josh placed a hand gently on her back. “You want more curry?” he asked. “The doctor said spicy food…” 

Donna was miserable. It was a hot and humid September, and she felt like she had been pregnant for years. They had been on a kick of trying anything to bring on her labor. They had gone for three walks a day for the past few days, eaten spicy food for every meal, and had sex so many times that it reminded Josh of when they had first gotten together. Though that method was proving difficult with both of their mothers in town for the birth. 

Donna had that look in her eye again. “Bed?” he asked knowingly and silently thanking God that their mothers had gone back to the hotel for dinner. 

“You bet,” she said determinedly. 

“You know it is less flattering and certainly less romantic when I know you are just using me to try and bring on labor,” he said. “Could you at least pretend that it is because you love me and want to be with me?” he asked. 

“You’re such a girl,” Donna said as she stripped out of her clothes. “But for the record, I do love you and always want to be with you. This just takes precedent now.” 

Josh laughed as he kissed his way down her neck. He focused on her breasts and her nipples specifically remembering that was another way to encourage labor. 

Finally spent and still annoyed, as they lie in bed, Josh’s arms wrapped around her, Donna said, “Let’s just sleep.” 

Josh nodded and kissed her shoulder. “I’m sorry you are miserable. I love you,” he said. 

“I love you too,” she replied. 

Josh woke up to Donna shaking his shoulder. His eyes fell on the clock as he opened them. “It’s only 4:45 Donna,” he muttered. “I haven’t over slept.” 

“Josh,” she insisted. He blinked and looked at her. “I’m in labor,” she stated. 

“What?” he exclaimed shooting up from the bed. “We need to go?” he asked. 

“My contractions are really far apart. I kind of want to shower first,” she said. “The doctor said that was okay.” 

“Okay,” Josh said. “I’ll just, umm, I’ll just…” He had no idea what to do, so he followed Donna into the bathroom. “Do you need help?” he asked. 

“To shower?” she questioned. “No.” She shook her head. “Why don’t you call our mothers at the hotel?” she suggested. 

“Okay,” he replied. He made the calls and then sat on the counter while Donna showered. When she got out, he hopped in and showered quickly. Soon, they were dressed and out the door. 

*************************

Between contractions Donna looked at Josh. He was smiling at her and handing her the cup of ice chips. “You still doing okay?” he asked. He had just returned from the waiting room where he had been updating his and Donna’s mothers on the labor. 

Donna had been in labor for nearly ten hours and the doctor kept telling her that the second stage would begin soon. She nodded at Josh and bit her lip. He took her hand and prepared himself for another contraction. The nurse came back into the room and examined Donna. “You’re fully effaced and nearly at ten centimeters,” she said. “We’ll begin the pushing stage very soon.” 

Sure enough, the doctor entered the room soon after and also examined Donna. “Alright,” she said. “You should be feeling a desire to push on this next contraction, so we are going to have you do that.” 

Josh offered Donna his hand and said, “Squeeze as hard as you want.” 

As the contraction hit and she pushed, Josh tried to be as supportive as possible. He was mostly at a loss though. A nurse patted his shoulder. “You’re doing fine,” she said. “Just be here for her.” He patted Donna’s head with a wet cloth. 

After what seemed to Donna like hours upon hours of pushing, Dr. Akin said, “Okay Donna, another big push and we should see the head.” 

She did, and Josh looked down to see the baby’s crowning head. “Oh my god,” he said. “I can see the head.” He smiled at Donna. “Blonde hair,” he added never losing the grin.

“Okay Donna,” the doctor said. “Another big push.” 

Donna locked eyes with Josh. “You can do it,” he said encouragingly. “You are so amazing. You’re doing such an incredible job.” 

She nodded and took a deep breath before squeezing his hand and pushing again. They continued the routine until the doctor said, “Alright, this should be your last big push.” 

Donna steeled herself and pushed once again. “You have a beautiful baby girl,” the doctor reported. 

Josh stared at the baby in disbelief. “She’s perfect,” he breathed out. 

“Here dad,” Dr. Akin said with a smile at him. “You want to cut the cord?” 

Josh nodded. “Yeah,” he said. He smiled at Donna briefly before cutting the umbilical cord and following the nurse to watch them clean up his daughter. 

“Here,” the nurse said handing the baby to Josh after cleaning her up and swaddling her. 

He stared down at the tiny creature in his arms. Crossing to Donna, he placed their little girl in her arms. “She’s perfect,” he said. 

“You’re so beautiful,” Donna cooed to the baby. 

“The most beautiful,” Josh agreed. 

“Does she have a name?” the nurse asked as she helped Donna adjust herself after being cleaned up. 

“Kennedy,” Josh and Donna replied in unison. 

Josh quickly hurried to the bag they’d brought and pulled out his camera. “Here,” he said taking a picture. 

“Would you like us to let your mothers know they can come in?” the nurse asked. 

“Thanks,” Donna replied. 

Shortly both grandmothers had entered the room. Josh continued in the roll of photographer. Finally his mother took the camera from him, “Joshua get over their by Donna. We need a picture of you with your girls.” Josh beamed as he quickly wrapped an arm around Donna’s shoulder and rested his other hand on Kennedy side. Eventually, his mother and Donna’s left to go get some rest at the hotel. 

************************

Donna woke still feeling exhausted but in the best way she could imagine. She smiled at the view waiting for her. Josh was leaning over Kennedy’s bassinet whispering things to her. She waited, not drawing attention to the fact that she was awake, and listened to what he said. “And President Bartlet said I had to teach you to whistle, climb a tree, and throw a ball. Some dads think only boys need to be taught that, but you can do anything a boy can do.” He smiled down at her. “And you can talk to me about anything, even makeup and boys. Though your mom probably knows more about that stuff than I do. On the topic of boys,” he added, “you can’t date any republicans. Your mom always seemed to like them. That is the only way you can’t be like her, otherwise…” 

Donna took that moment to interrupt. “I only dated republicans because the democrat I wanted was unavailable to me.” 

Josh turned and smiled at her. “You’re awake,” he said. “He wasn’t unavailable, just unaware.” He picked up Kennedy gently and moved toward Donna. “Look, she got a stylin’ hat while you were sleeping.” He placed Kennedy in Donna’s arms and adjusted the tiny pink beanie on her head. 

“You put her in a onesie,” Donna said. She adjusted the green polka dotted outfit. 

“Yeah, she kept wiggling out of her blanket,” Josh explained. “I guess she is like her mother in that way. But, one of the nurses taught me to swaddle her. I’m an expert now.” 

Donna smiled down at Kennedy. “Our mothers still back at the hotel?” she asked. 

“Yeah,” he stated. “I think they might be giving us sometime on our own.” 

“It’s amazing,” Donna said. “How is it possible to love someone so much so quickly?” 

Josh shook his head. “I don’t know. I kept reading things about how it takes fathers longer to love babies than it does mothers. Is it really possible I could love her more than I do now?” 

Donna didn’t respond lost in the details of her daughter. “Her little tiny fingers,” she said as Kennedy wrapped her fingers around Donna’s index finger. Josh just smiled at them. Donna looked up at him thoughtfully. “You’re amazing, you know?” she said. 

“Me?” Josh asked. “I haven’t done anything. You did all the hard work here.” 

“I don’t know how I would have done it without you,” she replied. 

“The nurse said you should feed her again when you woke up,” Josh said. 

Donna nodded. “I hope she makes it easier this time.” 

Josh was just about to ask if she wanted him to get the nurse when there was a light knock at the door and Donna’s mother stuck her head in. “Can we come in?” she asked. She entered before getting an answer, followed by Josh’s mother. 

“You get some rest?” Josh asked. 

Evelyn Lyman smiled at his son. “Yes dear. How about you?” 

“Uh,” Josh uttered. “I’m fine.” 

“Well at least come with me to get something to eat downstairs. We’ll give Donna and Anna with some time together,” she replied. 

Josh looked between Donna, with their daughter in her arms, Anna Moss, who sat in the chair by her daughter’s bedside, and his own mother. “Umm,” he murmured. 

“Go on, Josh,” Donna said. “We’re fine.”

“You’re sure?” he asked. She nodded and he leaned down to kiss her forehead and a bit further to kiss Kennedy’s. “Do you want me to bring you something?” he asked. 

“Yes,” she replied. “Something chocolate.” 

He laughed. “Okay,” he replied. “Anna?” he asked. 

“Coffee?” she asked. “Cream and one sugar.” 

“Just like Donna’s,” Josh stated following his mother from the room. 

Anna Moss smiled at her daughter. “How are you feeling?” she asked. 

“Tired still,” Donna said. “I need to feed her again. She was a little reluctant last time.” 

“You’ll do fine, both of you,” Anna said supportively. “Just relax.” Donna adjusted her shirt and Kennedy and smiled happily when the baby latched on and began to nurse. Anna smiled at her. “See,” she said. 

“Yeah,” Donna replied. “It’s so amazing that she is actually here,” she said with a grin. 

“Josh still appears to be walking on air,” Anna stated. “Who would have thought.” 

“He was lecturing her about not dating republicans when I woke up,” Donna said with a laugh. “And promising to teach her to throw a ball.” 

“Your father was just as enamored with you,” Anna said. “Something about fathers and daughters.” 

“He’s going to spoil her rotten,” Donna stated using her fingers to brush Kennedy’s fuzz of hair that was sticking out from under her hat. “She’s going to say ‘Daddy’, and he’ll do anything she asks.” 

Anna nodded. “Probably.” 

\--------------------------------

“How do you feel?” Evelyn asked her son as they sat down at the table with their food. 

“Amazed,” Josh replied. “I never knew anyone could be so amazingly perfect.” He grinned. “Everything about her is incredible.” 

Evelyn smiled at him. She then looked more seriously. “But…” she prompted. 

“Nothing,” Josh stated quickly. 

“Joshua,” his mother warned. “I’ve known you longer than anyone. You can’t fool me. I am your mother.” 

He sighed. “Don’t tell Donna?” he asked. His mother nodded. “I’m terrified.” 

She laughed. “Donna probably is too, sweetheart. It’s normal.” 

He nodded. “Yeah?” he asked. “I’m just worried I will be bad at it.” 

“Of course,” she said. “You’re doing something brand new that you have never done before.” She placed her hand on his. “Besides, you never think you’re good enough, but you know what Josh?” 

“What?” he asked. 

“You always surprise yourself and do an amazing job,” she stated. “You’ve always been like that. And,” she added, “just like every other parent, you’ll learn by making mistakes.” She looked deeply into his eyes. “I don’t think that is what you are really scared of though.” 

He sighed slowly. “No,” he stated. 

“You’re scared you’ll lose them, Donna and Kennedy,” she stated. “I know you think it has something to do with you Josh. I know you still have guilt over Joanie, but Joshua, darling, you aren’t God.” 

Josh dropped his eyes to his plate. He said nothing. Then he felt his mother squeeze his hand. He looked up at her and saw tears sparkling in her eyes. “I’m sorry Mom,” he said as tears threatened to spill from his own eyes. 

“You don’t have anything to apologize for,” she replied. “That is the point. You know what you are Joshua?” she asked. 

“What?” he asked. 

“My miracle. I miss your sister everyday, but I thank God everyday as well. I thank him because I didn’t lose both of my children.” Josh looked up and smiled sadly at his mother. 

When they reentered Donna’s room, Anna was sitting in the chair holding Kennedy while she talked to Donna. “Here Evelyn,” she said offering the other grandmother their granddaughter. “I’ve had my turn.” After passing off the baby, she took her coffee from Josh, who also handed Donna a brownie before sitting down on the edge of the bed. 

“I’m sorry to say it Josh, but I think she takes after Donna,” his mother said smiling down at the little girl. 

“I don’t know that that is a bad thing,” Josh said with a grin toward Donna. He reached out and took her hand. 

“I think that hair is threatening to curl,” Donna said, squeezing his hand. “That definitely didn’t come from me.” 

“Her eyes did though,” Josh replied. 

“You had blue eyes when you were born too,” Evelyn said. “So don’t count that out.” 

“I think she is just perfect. A beautiful blend of both of you,” Anna said patting Josh’s shoulder. “I think I’m ready to head back to the hotel for the night. How about you Evelyn?” 

“I am,” Evelyn placed Kennedy back in her bassinet, kissed Josh and Donna’s cheeks, and she and Anna left with promises to be back in the morning. 

“You could go home,” Donna said to Josh. 

“Not a chance,” he replied. “I have a cot.” 

“You won’t be comfortable,” she said. “And what about your back?”

“Suffering for your family is part of being a man,” he said with a smirk. He moved to sit next to her and wrapped and arm around her. Her head rested against his shoulder. Leaning down, he gently kissed her hairline. 

Josh’s line of sight drifted to where Kennedy was sleeping soundly. “You know,” he began. “Earlier, when you were sleeping, I was thinking about when Zoey was taken.” Donna turned her head and looked at him. “I argued with everyone. I thought the President was insane for resigning and letting Walken take charge. Toby kept saying something along the lines that he would carpet bomb Mecca if someone hurt one of his kids, but he couldn’t change my mind.” 

“Yeah?” Donna asked looking back at Kennedy. 

“I get it now,” Josh finished. “Finally, I get what Toby and Leo were saying, why President Bartlet did what he did.” 

“Yeah,” Donna replied with a nod. 

“I was talking to my mom downstairs. She called me her miracle,” he said. 

“She’s told me that she thinks of you that way,” Donna said. 

“I think you are my miracles. You and Kennedy.” He leaned down and kissed her. 

“You’re my miracle too Josh,” she replied leaning into his side. “How about you grab our daughter so she can join in the family hug over here?” 

“My pleasure,” he replied standing up and lifting Kennedy from her bassinet. He placed her in Donna’s arms as he settled back onto the bed next to her. He wrapped one arm around her shoulders and helped to cradle Kennedy’s head. His other arm he placed over Donna’s under their daughter. 

“Completely a miracle,” Donna said. Josh nodded. He couldn’t have agreed more.


End file.
